No easy way out for Abbott as deal target faces bribery probe

Minneapolis

ABBOTT Laboratories tried to end its US$5.8 billion agreement to buy Alere Inc after finding out in mid- March that the medical-testing company was swept up in a US probe of bribery overseas. Alere's shares, meanwhile, are trading at levels suggesting that investors have their doubts about the transaction - at least at the current price.

Not so fast, legal experts and analysts say. Violations of the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or FCPA, aren't necessarily a deal-breaker and with Alere refusing to go away, Abbott may have no easy way out.