Mylan Inc. filed suit yesterday against the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, accusing the newspaper of improperly obtaining confidential documents and misappropriating trade secrets in reporting on practices at the company's Morgantown, W.Va., generic drug plant.

The case filed in the Circuit Court of Monongalia, W.Va., seeks the return of any internal Mylan documents as well as compensatory damages and other relief.

The Cecil company argues in the lawsuit that an article in the newspaper's July 26 edition "mischaracterized" information about Mylan procedures and created the "false appearance of significant quality and regulatory issues" at the plant.

The Post-Gazette article referenced in the lawsuit cited an internal Mylan report that said workers in the plant had, over an extended period, sidestepped computer-generated warnings about potential problems. The article said the company's quality assurance team had concluded that no medications had been compromised.

A review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration after the article's publication found that Mylan had conducted an investigation of the matter and took action to retrain operators in proper procedures as well as to implement a patch to the computerized quality control system.

The FDA said it planned "no additional action."

Mylan, in its lawsuit, said the "sensationalized misuse of the documents caused harm to Mylan and its shareholders, evidenced by substantial market volatility, a decrease in its stock price and the resulting decrease in market capitalization, all of which occurred on the second largest trading day in Mylan's history."

The suit names the newspaper, as well as Post-Gazette reporters Len Boselovic and Patricia Sabatini, and other unknown individuals in the employ of either Mylan or the Post-Gazette who may have been involved.

Mylan Chairman and CEO Robert J. Coury said in a statement yesterday that the company was disappointed that the situation occurred. He said the company has turned the matter over to its legal department and will not be discussing the matter going forward.

In response to the announcement, Post-Gazette Publisher and Editor-In-Chief John Robinson Block said, "We've had a chance to review the complaint. The allegations, which challenge not the content of the Post-Gazette's reporting but rather our news gathering, are meritless. We will vigorously defend the Post-Gazette against this suit."