UNITED
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SCHEDULE
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Soliciting
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DISCOVERY
LABORATORIES, INC.
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This
filing consists of a press release issued by Discovery Laboratories, Inc. (the
“Company”), on December 7, 2010, which may be deemed to be solicitation material
in respect of the proposals described in the Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A,
filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 15,
2010.
Leading
Proxy Advisory Firms Recommend that Discovery Labs’ Stockholders Vote “FOR”
Important Proposals at Annual Meeting of Stockholders
Warrington, PA – December 7,
2010 — Discovery
Laboratories, Inc. (Nasdaq: DSCO), announced today that two independent
proxy advisory firms, ISS Proxy Advisory Services (“ISS”) and Glass, Lewis &
Co. (“Glass Lewis”), recommend that stockholders vote “FOR” management’s
proposals (i) to provide the Board of Directors with the authority to effect a
share consolidation, or reverse split, of the Company’s common stock at a ratio
of 1-for-15 (Proposal 3) and, (ii) subject to the approval of Proposal 3, to
authorize the Board of Directors to reduce the number of authorized shares of
common stock available for issuance from 380 million to 50 million (Proposal 4),
in each case on the terms described in Discovery Labs’ proxy
statement. ISS, a subsidiary of MSCI Inc., and Glass Lewis are
leading providers of proxy research and governance services to institutional
investors. Their services include objective analyses of proxy
proposals and individual voting recommendations, which are relied upon and
adopted by many major financial institutions, including advisory firms,
investment funds and mutual funds, throughout the world.
"We are
pleased that ISS and Glass Lewis, well respected independent leaders in proxy
advisory services, support these important proposals,” said Discovery Labs’
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, W. Thomas Amick. “Our Board of
Directors and management team strongly support these proposals, which we believe
best position our company to achieve its strategic objectives.”
Discovery
Labs presented Proposal 3 to its stockholders to support potential continued
listing of its common stock on The NASDAQ Capital Market® (Capital
Market). Discovery Labs believes that continued listing on the
Capital Market would enhance its ability to potentially attract strategic
partners and secure capital necessary to continue funding its operations,
including activities to gain FDA approval in 2011 for Surfaxin® for the
prevention of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in premature infants, and
continued investment in its research and development programs, including
Surfaxin LS™, a lyophilized (dry powdered) formulation, and Aerosurf®, the
Company’s initial aerosolized KL4
surfactant.
If
Proposals 3 and 4 are not approved by its stockholders, Discovery Labs believes
that its common stock may be subject to delisting from the Capital Market, which
would adversely impact the liquidity and marketability of its common stock and
significantly limit its ability to finance operations and attract strategic
partners. Discovery Labs believes that Proposals 3 and 4, which taken
together achieve an appropriate increase in the number of shares of
common stock, are critical to its plans to potentially fund future operations
and enter into strategic alliances and collaborative arrangements that may
include the issuance of common stock.
Discovery
Labs’ stockholders are encouraged to read the definitive proxy statement which
includes a comprehensive discussion of the reverse split and authorized shares
proposals. Discovery Labs’ Board of Directors unanimously recommends
that Discovery Labs’ stockholders vote “FOR” all proposals at the upcoming
Annual Meeting.
YOUR
PARTICIPATION IS IMPORTANT - PLEASE VOTE.
The 2010
Annual Meeting of stockholders of Discovery Labs will be held at The Inn at
Lambertville Station, 11 Bridge Street, Lambertville, NJ 08530 on December 21,
2010, at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time, and at any postponements or
adjournments thereof. Only holders of record of Discovery Labs’ common stock at
the close of business on October 25, 2010 are entitled to notice to vote at the
special meeting. Stockholders are urged to carefully read the proxy
materials that were mailed in connection with the Annual Meeting.
Stockholders
who have questions about the proposals or who need assistance voting their
shares should contact Discovery Labs’ proxy solicitor, Morrow & Co., LLC,
toll-free, at (800) 483-1314.
Disclosure
Notice:
The
discussion in this press release of the Company’s Proposal 3 to authorize a
reverse split and Proposal 4 to reduce the number of authorized shares is
modified in its entirety by the description of Proposal 3 and Proposal 4
contained in the Company’s proxy statement, which was filed with the SEC on
November 15, 2010, and can be viewed, together with other materials related to
the Annual Meeting of Stockholders, at www.ezodproxy.com/discoverylabs/2010. The
reader is encouraged to read the entire description of Proposal 3 and Proposal 4
in the proxy statement, including the sections titled “Certain Risks Associated
with a Reverse Split” and “Effects of a Reverse Split.”
Discovery
Laboratories, Inc. is a biotechnology company developing surfactant therapies
for respiratory diseases. Surfactants are produced naturally in the lungs
and are essential for breathing. Discovery Labs’ novel proprietary KL4 surfactant
technology produces a synthetic, peptide-containing surfactant that is
structurally similar to pulmonary surfactant and is being developed in liquid,
aerosol or lyophilized formulations. In addition, Discovery Labs’
proprietary capillary aerosolization technology produces a dense aerosol, with a
defined particle size that is capable of potentially delivering aerosolized
KL4
surfactant to the lung without the complications currently associated with
liquid surfactant administration. Discovery Labs believes that its
proprietary technology platform makes it possible, for the first time, to
develop a significant pipeline of surfactant products to address a variety of
respiratory diseases for which there frequently are few or no approved
therapies. For more information, please visit our website at www.Discoverylabs.com.
Forward-Looking
Statements
To
the extent that statements in this press release are not strictly historical,
all such statements are forward-looking, and are made pursuant to the safe
harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. These forward-looking statements, including with respect to the
potential continued listing of the Company’s common stock on the Nasdaq Capital
Market, the potential approval in the United States of Surfaxin for the
prevention of RDS in premature infants and the potential advancement of the
Company’s other KL4 surfactant
programs, the impact of stockholder voting on Proposal 3 and Proposal 4 at the
upcoming Annual Meeting of Stockholders, and the ability of the Company to fund
its activities, through registered financings or otherwise, are subject to
certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ
materially from the statements made. Examples of such risks and
uncertainties are described in the Company’s filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission including the Company’s proxy statement on Schedule 14A and
the most recent reports on Forms 10-K, 10-Q and 8-K, and any amendments
thereto.
Contact
Information:
Investor
relations:
John G.
Cooper, President and Chief Financial Officer