Diag Human is a

Liechtenstein Liechtenstein (), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein (german: link=no, Fürstentum Liechtenstein), is a German-speaking microstate located in the Alps between Austria and Switzerland. Liechtenstein is a semi-constitutional monarchy ...

-incorporated

blood plasma Blood plasma is a light amber-colored liquid component of blood in which blood cells are absent, but contains proteins and other constituents of whole blood in suspension. It makes up about 55% of the body's total blood volume. It is the intra ...

trading company, established by

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...

- Czech entrepreneur Josef Šťáva (born 17 March 1950 in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

) in the 1980s. The stated aim of the company was to help "currency-deficient Eastern Bloc states acquire modern blood plasma technology".

Lawsuit against the Czech government

The company received media attention in the 1996, when it filed a lawsuit against the

Czech government The Government of the Czech Republic ( cz, Vláda České republiky) exercises executive power in the Czech Republic. The members of the government are the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic (Chairman of the Government), the deputy prime min ...

in Prague Commercial Court, for defamation and unfair competition. The company claimed that the Health Minister had contacted

Novo Nordisk Novo Nordisk A/S is a Danish multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Bagsværd, Denmark, with production facilities in nine countries, and affiliates or offices in five countries. Novo Nordisk is controlled by majority shareholder ...

, a major business partner of Diag Human, to dissuade the company from doing business with them, which led to the failure of Diag Human's business in the country. The two parties agreed to enter arbitration, and the case became one of the largest cases of commercial litigation in the history of Czech Republic. In 2008, the court found in favour of Diag Human, awarding around $650 million to the company.

References

Biotechnology companies of Liechtenstein {{Czech-stub