2.4.0.81100 - Disclosure - COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIEStruefalsefalse1false falsefalseD2013Q2YTDhttp://www.sec.gov/CIK0001121702duration2013-01-01T00:00:002013-06-30T00:00:001true 1us-gaap_CommitmentsAndContingenciesDisclosureAbstractus-gaap_truenadurationfalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalse1falsefalsefalse00falsefalsefalsexbrli:stringItemTypestringfalse0COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES2false 2us-gaap_CommitmentsAndContingenciesDisclosureTextBlockus-gaap_truenadurationfalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalseterseLabel1falsefalsefalse00<div style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Times New Roman;"> 10. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES   Litigation   On February 17, 2012, a purported shareholder class action, Hilary Coyne v. Metabolix, Inc., Richard P. Eno, and Joseph Hill, Civil Action 1:12-cv-10318 (the “Class Action”), was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, naming the Company and certain officers of the Company as defendants. The Class Action alleges that the Company made material misrepresentations and/or omissions of material fact in the Company’s disclosures during the period from March 10, 2010 through its January 12, 2012 press release announcing that ADM had given notice of termination of the Telles joint venture for PHA biopolymers, all in violation of Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act and Rule 10b-5. The Class Action seeks certification as a class action, compensatory damages in an unspecified amount, plaintiff’s costs and attorneys’ fees, and unspecified equitable or  injunctive relief. The plaintiff filed an amended complaint on October 15, 2012 that supersedes the initial complaint and demands identical relief based on substantially similar allegations. On December 14, 2012, the defendants filed a motion to dismiss the amended complaint, which plaintiffs opposed, and on which the court has not yet ruled.   On March 7, 2012, a purported derivative lawsuit, Childs v. Kouba et al., Civil Action 12-0892 (the “Derivative Action”), was filed in Massachusetts Superior Court for Middlesex County, on behalf of the Company against members of the Company’s Board of Directors for alleged breaches of their fiduciary duties and based on a nearly identical set of alleged facts as those asserted in the Class Action. The Derivative Action seeks compensatory damages in an unspecified amount, plaintiff’s costs and attorneys’ fees, and unspecified equitable or injunctive relief. The parties in the Derivative Action filed and the court granted a joint motion to stay the derivative action until after resolution of the anticipated motion to dismiss in the Class Action.   The Company is currently unable to assess the probability of loss or estimate a range of potential loss, if any, associated with these matters because they are at an early stage.   From time to time, the Company may be subject to other legal proceedings and claims in the ordinary course of business. The Company is not currently aware of any such other proceedings or claims that it believes will have, individually or in the aggregate, a material adverse effect on the business, financial condition or the results of operations.   </div>falsefalsefalsenonnum:textBlockItemTypenaThe entire disclosure for commitments and contingencies.Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name FASB Interpretation (FIN) -Number 14 -Paragraph 3 -LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy. 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