Cayman court orders Apple Tree Partners’ general partner to give up control of venture fund
A Cayman Islands court ruled that Seth Harrison, the general partner of biotech venture firm Apple Tree Partners, must relinquish oversight of the fund. The order could shift management to two court‑appointed independent directors from Alvarez & Marsal.
The appointed directors, Alexander Lawson and Barry Lynch, are expected to assume control of the fund’s operations, removing Harrison from day‑to‑day decision making.
The ruling comes amid a broader legal battle that includes a separate U.S. bankruptcy proceeding. Apple Tree Partners is pursuing a restructuring plan to keep financing its portfolio companies, and Harrison has positioned himself as a bidder for those startups.
The dispute traces back to 2012 when a family trust linked to Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev agreed to fund up to $1.5 billion of Apple Tree’s biotech investments, a relationship that has become entangled in the current litigation.
This writeup was produced by pharmadog from original reporting by BioPharma Dive.
Original headline: “Judge orders Apple Tree partner to forfeit oversight of venture fund”
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