Item 3. Legal Proceedings

On May 16, 2023, the Company received an inquiry from the Enforcement Division of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requesting it to voluntarily provide information, subsequently augmented with a document subpoena and additional inquiries, primarily related to the sourcing of non-human primates and related disclosures, and the Company cooperated with the requests. The Company’s Audit Committee retained counsel to conduct an independent investigation into

CHARLES RIVER LABORATORIES INTERNATIONAL, INC.

certain issues raised in the investigations. On November 14, 2025, the SEC’s Division of Enforcement (Division) notified the Company that it concluded its investigation and, based on the information available to the Division, it does not intend to recommend an enforcement action by the SEC against the Company. Similarly, the Company’s independent investigation into these matters has also concluded, with no material findings.

A putative securities class action (Securities Class Action) was filed on May 19, 2023 against the Company and a number of its current/former officers in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. On August 31, 2023, the court appointed the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio as lead plaintiff. An amended complaint was filed on November 14, 2023 that, among other things, included only James Foster, the Chief Executive Officer and David R. Smith, the former Chief Financial Officer as defendants along with the Company. The amended complaint asserts claims under §§ 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the Exchange Act) on behalf of a putative class of purchasers of Company securities from May 5, 2020 through February 21, 2023, alleging that certain of the Company’s disclosures about its practices with respect to the importation of non-human primates made during the putative class period were materially false or misleading. On July 1, 2024, the court dismissed the complaint, denied the plaintiff’s informal request for leave to amend, and entered judgment for defendants. On July 30, the plaintiff filed a notice of appeal in the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. Oral arguments took place on May 5, 2025. On August 15, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit reversed in part the district court’s dismissal on the pleadings of the securities fraud claims. The case returned to U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts. On October 16, 2025, the plaintiff filed a motion to withdraw the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio as lead plaintiff, due to lack of statutory standing, and substitute Oklahoma Firefighters Pension and Retirement System. While the Company cannot predict the final outcome of this matter, it believes the class action to be without merit and plans to vigorously defend against it. The Company cannot reasonably estimate the maximum potential exposure or the range of possible loss in association with this matter.

On November 8, 2023, a stockholder filed a derivative lawsuit in the U.S. District Court of the District of Delaware asserting claims on the Company’s behalf against the members of the Company’s Board of Directors and certain of the Company’s current/former officers (James Foster, the Chief Executive Officer; David R. Smith, a former Chief Financial Officer; and Flavia Pease, a former Chief Financial Officer). The complaint alleges that the defendants breached their fiduciary duties to the Company and its stockholders because certain of the Company’s disclosures about its practices with respect to the importation of non-human primates were materially false or misleading. The complaint also alleges that the defendants breached their fiduciary duties by causing the Company to fail to maintain adequate internal controls over securities disclosure and compliance with applicable law and by failing to comply with the company’s Code of Business Conduct and Ethics. On August 2, 2024, a different stockholder filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court of Delaware asserting similar derivative claims on the Company’s behalf against members of the Company’s current and former Board of Directors and the same current/former officers based on similar allegations of purportedly misleading disclosures and non-compliance with legal rules and ethics standards in respect of the importation of non-human primates, as well as insider-trading claims against certain of the defendants. Both of these lawsuits are currently stayed by agreement of the parties pending further developments in the Securities Class Action pending in the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. While the Company cannot predict the outcome of these matters, it believes the derivative lawsuits to be without merit and plans to vigorously defend against them. The Company cannot reasonably estimate the maximum potential exposure or the range of possible loss in association with these matters.