According to the Complaint, Ocugen, Inc. identifies itself as a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing gene therapies to cure blindness and developing a vaccine to save lives from COVID-19. The company’s main developments are a modifier gene therapy platform based on nuclear hormone receptors (“NHRs”) to generate therapies for patient with inherited retinal diseases (“IRDs”) and dry age-related macular degeneration (“AMD”).

On February 5, 2021, after the market close, Ocugen filed a Form 8-K with the SEC. Attached to the Form 8-K as exhibit 99.1 was an investor presentation regarding the Company’s apparent new mission to “develop a vaccine to save lives from COVID19”. The presentation described in great detail the Covaxin vaccine characteristics, the “unmet need in the United States” and Ocugen’s plan to develop and file an Emergency Use Authorization (“EUA”) with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”).

The Complaint alleges that Ocugen made materially false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) the information submitted to the U.S. FDA was insufficient to support an EUA, (ii) Ocugen would not file an EUA with the FDA, (iii) as a result of the foregoing, the Company's financial statements, as well as Defendants' statements about Ocugen's business, operations, and prospects, were false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis.

On March 31, 2022, the Court issued an Order consolidating cases and appointing Lead Plaintiff and Counsel. All future docketing was ordered to be done in the lead case 21-CV-02725.

Lead Plaintiff filed a consolidated amended Complaint on June 13, 2022. Defendants filed a Motion to Dismiss the consolidated amended Complaint on August 12. On August 17, the parties stipulated to the dismissal without prejudice of one of the individual Defendants.

On March 3, 2023, the Court issued an Order granting Defendants' Motion to Dismiss. The case was dismissed with prejudice.

Lead Plaintiff filed a notice appealing the Court's Dismissal Order on March 29, 2023. On April 12, 2024, the Court of Appeals affirmed the ruling of the District Court.