Forest Laboratories appoints new independent board member

Forest Laboratories has appointed Vincent Intrieri as a new independent member of its board of directors.

Mr Intrieri has been involved in various investment-related capacities with business entities affiliated with influential Forest shareholder Carl Icahn for a number of years and now joins an expanded 11-member Forest board.

As part of this arrangement, Mr Icahn has agreed to vote the shares that he controls in support of Forest's 11 director nominees and not run a proxy contest at the Company’s 2013 annual meeting.

This will help the firm move towards its priority business targets of advancing its portfolio of late-stage pipeline and newly-launched products in a seamless manner.

Howard Solomon, chairman, chief executive officer and president of Forest, said: "Given his significant financial expertise and board experience, he [Mr Intrieri] will offer a new perspective and valuable insights that will further strengthen our diverse and independent board."

This comes after it was announced earlier this month that Mr Solomon will be retiring from the firm at the end of the year, having led Forest since 1977.