Trust Robin, Inc. v. Tissue Analytics, Inc.

Court of Chancery of Delaware·Decided December 2, 2022·No. CA No. 2021-0806-SG·Published

Opinion

IN THE COURT OF CHANCERY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE

TRUST ROBIN, INC. )

)

Plaintiff, )

)

v. ) C.A. No. 2021-0806-SG )

TISSUE ANALYTICS, INC. and ) NET HEALTH SYSTEMS INC. )

)

Defendants. )

)

MEMORANDUM OPINION

Date Submitted: October 13, 2022 Date Decided: December 2, 2022

Stephen C. Norman and Jaclyn C. Levy, of POTTER ANDERSON & CORROON LLP, Wilmington, Delaware, Attorneys for Plaintiff Trust Robin, Inc.

Gary W. Lipkin of SAUL EWING ARNSTEIN & LEHR, LLP, Wilmington, Delaware, Attorney for Defendants Net Health Systems, Inc. and Tissue Analytics, Inc.

GLASSCOCK, Vice Chancellor

This matter arises from the relationship (the form of which is an item of dispute) between two entities that came together to develop and market a “digital” wound-care product.1 One of the entities, a party Defendant here, merged with a competitor of the other entity, the Plaintiff. Per the operative complaint (the “Amended Complaint”), much mischief followed.

This is a court of limited jurisdiction, and the first order of judicial business was to determine whether equitable jurisdiction inhered in the allegations of the Amended Complaint. In my Memorandum Opinion of September 29, 2022 (the “September Opinion”), I held that this Court has subject matter jurisdiction over the Plaintiffs claims, based on the sufficiency of a cause of action sounding in equitable fraud. 2 However, I noted in the September Opinion that, with the exception of the equitable fraud claim, the Plaintiff’s remaining causes of action were still subject to the Defendant’s pending motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6). 3 The Amended Complaint contains ten counts, some of which are pled in the alternative: common law fraud, fraudulent concealment, fraudulent inducement, equitable fraud, breach of contract, tortious interference with contract, tortious interference with prospective economic advantage, unjust enrichment, civil

1 That is, an online source for wound-care treatment, not a product to treat wounded fingers. 2 Tr. Robin, Inc. v. Tissue Analytics, Inc., 2022 WL 4545174, at *4 (Del. Ch. Sept. 29, 2022) [the “September Opinion”]. 3 Defs.’ Mot. to Dismiss the Am. Compl., Dkt. No. 21.

conspiracy, and breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing.4 In the September Opinion, I instructed the parties to discuss the claims in light of my decision and to advise me as to which claims remain subject to the Motion to Dismiss.5 On October 13, 2022, the parties requested a decision on all claims.6 Accordingly, this Memorandum Opinion addresses the nine remaining claims.

The Amended Complaint leads the Court on a frolicsome romp through allegations of both breaches of contract and a substantial number of contract- adjacent torts. It is rarely a sign of strength in a pleading, in my experience, that it asserts numerous, and often redundant and overlapping, claims based on a single, rather straightforward set of facts; nonetheless, this matter is before me at the pleadings stage, on a motion that entitles the Plaintiff to all reasonable inferences with respect to each count pled. Although some of the causes of action are redundant—a situation that will necessarily be resolved in the course of litigation— I cannot on this record grant the Motion to Dismiss with respect to any particular claim of the Amended Complaint.

My reasoning follows an examination of the factual background, below.

4 Verified Am. Compl. ¶¶ 53–108, Dkt. No. 14 [the “Compl.”]. 5 September Opinion at *4. 6 Letter to Vice Chancellor Glasscock regarding the Mot. to Dismiss, Dkt. No. 48.

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

Unless otherwise noted, the facts referenced in this section are drawn from the Amended Complaint, exhibits thereto, and documents they incorporate by reference.

A. The Parties Plaintiff Trust Robin, Inc. (“Trust Robin”) is a Canadian corporation founded in 2016 that planned to become an early innovator in digital wound care management. 7 The company rebranded in April 2020 as iWound, seeking to provide an all-in-one digital platform through which patients, healthcare providers, and clinicians could easily exchange communications and patient data, allowing for improved remote monitoring of patient wounds throughout the healing process.8 Defendant Tissue Analytics, Inc. (“Tissue Analytics”) is a Delaware corporation with principal place of business in Baltimore, Maryland. 9 It specializes in the development of artificial intelligence-powered software for the healthcare sector.10 Defendant Net Health Systems, Inc. (“Net Health”) is a Pennsylvania corporation that provides cloud-based software for medical providers.11 Its principal

7 Compl. ¶¶ 2, 10, 20. 8 Id. ¶ 10. 9 Id. ¶ 11. 10 Id. 11 Id. ¶ 12.

place of business is in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 12 Following an April 2020 merger, Tissue Analytics became a wholly owned subsidiary of Net Health. 13 B. The Trust Robin – Tissue Analytics Deal According to the Amended Complaint, digital wound care applications have the potential to deliver safer, faster, more convenient healing results to patients by putting them in contact with healthcare professionals who can provide monitoring and advice remotely. 14 As of 2021, the United States market alone for apps of this type was an estimated $10 billion, with the global market projected to grow at a compounded annual rate of 17.7% through 2028. 15 Trust Robin sought to establish itself as a first mover in this area by bringing iWound, the first user-friendly digital wound care technology and education platform, to market. 16 However, in order to bring its vision to fruition, Trust Robin needed a collaborator with software development expertise. 17 Tissue Analytics’ experience with both software development and the healthcare sector made it an attractive candidate, and the two companies began discussing collaboration in fall 2019. 18 Each party would bring something valuable to the table: in addition to the

12 Id. 13 Id. ¶¶ 11, 16. 14 Id. ¶ 17. 15 Id. ¶ 18. 16 Id. ¶ 2. 17 Id. 18 Id. ¶¶ 11, 20, 21.

business concept, Trust Robin would provide educational materials for both patients and healthcare providers, along with its proprietary Wound Assist kit program, while Tissue Analytics would develop a cloud-based wound care imaging solution for integration with an “app.” 19 In October 2019, the companies memorialized these discussions in a Memorandum of Understanding, under which the parties also agreed to work together to market the iWound app. 20 C. Negotiations Continue, Net Health Enters the Equation The Plaintiff states on information and belief that Tissue Analytics was discussing a merger with Net Health as early as October 2019.21 If so, during Tissue Analytics’ initial discussions with Trust Robin, Tissue Analytics failed to disclose to Trust Robin that it was already in the process of being acquired by Net Health, a Trust Robin competitor.22 This acquisition put Tissue Analytics in a delicate position: while collaboration with Trust Robin had the potential to boost the software developer’s revenue and, through it, sale price, Trust Robin’s iWound app represented a worrisome incursion into Net Health’s home territory of cloud-based healthcare software.23 Faced with these conflicting concerns, Tissue Analytics

19 Id. ¶ 21. 20 Id. ¶ 23. 21 Id. ¶ 24. 22 Id. 23 Id.

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