Deals & Corporate Governance

  • November 19, 2024

    Calif. Biotech Firm Vera Taps Veteran Chief Legal Officer

    Biotechnology firm Vera Therapeutics is welcoming a new chief legal officer in advance of an anticipated biologics submission to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for a treatment targeting an autoimmune kidney disease.

  • November 19, 2024

    J&J Wants Beasley Allen Atty Sanctioned For Depo No-Show

    Johnson & Johnson's talc unit called on a Texas bankruptcy court to sanction a Beasley Allen Law Firm attorney for "unilaterally" deciding not to attend a scheduled deposition in the company's bankruptcy case.

  • November 19, 2024

    Kirkland Advises Amcor On $8.4B Berry Global Buy

    Kirkland & Ellis LLP-led Amcor PLC said Tuesday it has agreed to purchase fellow packaging company Berry Global Group Inc., in an all-stock deal that values Berry at more than $8.4 billion. 

  • November 18, 2024

    Melinta Obtains Ban On Generic Antibiotic Injections In IP Row

    A drugmaker that recently sold a manufacturing facility to Eli Lilly for nearly $1 billion has failed to persuade a federal judge in Chicago to wipe out patents covering a line of injections that treat infections developed by a recently bankrupt antibiotic developer.

  • November 18, 2024

    Medical Group Wants Justices To Review IP Safe Harbor Fight

    A medical device trade group has said the U.S. Supreme Court should take up an appeal of a Federal Circuit decision Edwards Lifesciences said broadened a drug-development safe harbor to avoid patent infringement, saying the circuit court misread the provision.

  • November 18, 2024

    Wachtell-Led CVS Adds Glenview CEO, Others To Board

    CVS Health, represented by Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz, said Monday it has struck a deal with activist investor Glenview Capital Management to appoint four new board members, including Glenview CEO Larry Robbins. 

  • November 15, 2024

    Orrick Trial Partner Joins Morgan Lewis In Boston

    Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP announced that an experienced litigator from Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP joined the firm's Boston office as a partner, enhancing its capacity in areas such as life sciences and regulatory compliance.

  • November 15, 2024

    Taxation With Representation: Cravath, MoFo, Gibson Dunn

    In this week's Taxation With Representation, Cardinal Health takes a majority stake in GI Alliance and acquires Advanced Diabetes Supply Group, Just Eat offloads Grubhub to Wonder Group, Rivian Automotive and Volkswagen Group launch a joint venture, and Ovintiv Inc. buys Montney Basin assets from Paramount Resources Ltd.

  • November 14, 2024

    Emergency Medical Providers Oppose $2.8B BCBS Deal

    A group of emergency clinic medical providers objected to the $2.8 billion settlement a broader class of medical providers reached with the Blue Cross Blue Shield network of insurers last month, as attorneys for the overall class boasted that the settlement would transform the insurers and bring historic payouts.

  • November 13, 2024

    Damages Limited In AGs' Generic Drug Price-Fixing Case

    A Connecticut federal judge has nixed some claims against Sandoz Inc. and other generic-drug makers in a massive antitrust and unfair trade practices case filed by state attorneys general, finding that a handful of the enforcers cannot seek damages on behalf of their allegedly injured citizens.

  • November 13, 2024

    Colo. Hospital System To Settle ER Billing Claims For $23M

    University of Colorado Health has agreed to pay $23 million to settle a lawsuit alleging the hospital system was submitting false claims to federal health care programs, U.S. Department of Justice officials announced Tuesday.

  • November 13, 2024

    Mich. Justice Jokes He's To Blame For PIP Assignment Fights

    A Michigan Supreme Court justice joked Wednesday that his 2017 footnote about patients assigning medical claims to healthcare providers was to blame for complicated recent insurance litigation surrounding plaintiffs who sign over their rights but nevertheless sue insurers. 

  • November 12, 2024

    Health Deal Attys See Hope — And Unknowns — In Trump 2.0

    In the days following the election results, attorneys say they've seen mixed reactions from the healthcare and life sciences industries, with some sectors cheering over what they expect to be a less stringent antitrust environment and others worrying over how potential policy changes could affect certain businesses.

  • November 12, 2024

    Cardinal Health, Endeavor Group Top Veterans Day M&A Deals

    While banks and federal offices were closed on Monday for Veterans Day, some companies were busy at work announcing various M&A transactions, including Cardinal Health's plan to pay a total of $3.9 billion to acquire two separate companies and Endeavor Group's sale of OpenBet and IMG Arena for $450 million.

  • November 12, 2024

    DOJ Suing To Block UnitedHealth Unit's $3.3B Amedisys Deal

    The U.S. Department of Justice and four U.S. states filed a lawsuit Tuesday seeking to block UnitedHealth Group's Optum unit from going through with its planned $3.3 billion purchase of Amedisys Inc., arguing the deal will harm competition in the home health and hospice services. 

  • November 08, 2024

    Astrana Health Acquires Prospect Health In $745M Deal

    Healthcare company Astrana Health Inc., advised by Russ August & Kabat LLP, on Friday announced plans to buy integrated care delivery system Prospect Health System, led by Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP, in a $745 million deal meant to ensure that health care remains local and personalized for patients across four states.

  • November 06, 2024

    5 Firms Guide $4.6B Cencora-Retina Consultants Deal

    Freshfields, Sidley Austin LLP and Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP are guiding Cencora Inc. on an agreement to acquire Retina Consultants of America from Webster Equity Partners for $4.6 billion in cash, Cencora said Wednesday.

  • November 05, 2024

    An Early Look At Trump's Supreme Court Shortlist

    With former President Donald Trump projected to win the 2024 presidential election and the Republicans' success in securing the U.S. Senate majority, Trump may now get the chance to appoint two more justices to the U.S. Supreme Court, cementing the court's conservative tilt for decades to come.

  • November 05, 2024

    GOP's Senate Win Hands Future Of The Judiciary To Trump

    Republicans were projected to take back the White House and Senate and possibly the House early Wednesday, putting the GOP in position to back Donald Trump's agenda and his slate of young, conservative judicial nominees. 

  • November 05, 2024

    The Firms With An Inside Track To A New Trump Admin

    Law firms that have represented Donald Trump and the Republican Party on everything from personal legal woes to election-related lawsuits could see the risks of that work pay dividends as Trump is projected to secure a second term in office.

  • November 05, 2024

    The Story Behind Vaccine Maker Gritstone's Ch. 11

    Vaccine maker Gritstone bio Inc. hit Chapter 11 after a tightening investment market left it starved of the capital it needed to keep doing its research into preventative treatments for cancer, COVID-19 and HIV, according to court filings.

  • November 05, 2024

    Apple Stole Masimo Sensor IP, Calif. Judge Told At Trial's Start

    Masimo and Cercacor Laboratories' counsel told a California federal judge at the opening of a bench trial Tuesday that after Apple struggled to implement blood oxygen sensors in a watch, the tech giant poached their employees and stole their trade secrets to get this key health technology into the Apple Watch.

  • November 05, 2024

    Eye-Rolling Must Stop, Judge Warns Before False Ad Trial

    A California federal judge overseeing a false advertising dispute set to go to trial Wednesday between Guardant Health and Natera cautioned lawyers for the medical diagnostic testing companies on Tuesday to stop their "eye-rolling" when opposing counsel speaks and also urged the rivals to keep trying for a last-minute settlement.

  • November 05, 2024

    Bankruptcy Not Delaying NJ Health System's Antitrust Case

    A New Jersey federal magistrate judge on Tuesday partly denied CarePoint Health Management's request to delay its antitrust case against RWJBarnabas Health Inc. because of CarePoint's recent bankruptcy filing.

  • November 05, 2024

    Takeaways From This Week's Healthcare Earnings

    A host of major healthcare companies released financial results this past week, with investor calls touching on topics ranging from legal battles with the federal government over Medicare Advantage plans to concerns about cuts to obesity drug sales.

Expert Analysis

  • High Court Made Profound Mistake In Tossing Purdue Deal

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision to throw out Purdue Pharma's Chapter 11 plan jeopardizes a multistate agreement that would provide approximately $7 billion in much-needed relief to help fight the opioid epidemic, with states now likely doomed to spend years chasing individual defendants across the globe, says Swain Wood at Morningstar.

  • After Chevron: Scale Tips Favor Away From HHS Agencies

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    The loss of Chevron deference may indirectly aid parties in challenging the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' interpretations of regulations and could immediately influence several pending cases challenging HHS on technical questions and agency authority, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • After Chevron: FDA Regulations In The Crosshairs

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of the Chevron doctrine is likely to unleash an array of challenges against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, focusing on areas of potential overreach such as the FDA's authority under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Navigating Scrutiny Of Friendly Professional Corps. In Calif.

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    In light of ongoing scrutiny and challenges to private equity participation in the California healthcare marketplace, particularly surrounding the use of the friendly professional corporation model, management services organizations should consider implementing four best practices, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: June Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy considers two recent decisions from the Third and Tenth Circuits, and identifies practice tips around class action settlements and standing in securities litigation.

  • The Current State Of Healthcare Transaction Reviews In Calif.

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    As of April, certain healthcare transactions in California have been subject to additional notification compliance requirements, and complying with these new rules could significantly delay and discourage some deals, says Andrew Demetriou at Husch Blackwell.

  • Careful Data Governance Is A Must Amid Enforcement Focus

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    Federal and state regulators' heightened focus on privacy enforcement, including the Federal Trade Commission's recent guidance on consumer protection in the car industry, highlight the importance of proactive risk management, compliance and data governance, say Jason Priebe and Danny Riley at Seyfarth.

  • 5 Steps To Navigating State Laws On Healthcare Transactions

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    As more states pass legislation requiring healthcare-transaction notice, private equity investors and other deal parties should evaluate the new laws and consider ways to mitigate their effects, say Carol Loepere and Nicole Aiken-Shaban at Reed Smith.

  • Feds' Biotech Enforcement Efforts Are Too Heavy-Handed

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    The U.S. Department of Justice's recent actions against biotech companies untether the Anti-Kickback Statute from its original legislative purpose, and threaten to stifle innovation and undermine patient quality of care, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • Del. Ruling Highlights M&A Deal Adviser Conflict Disclosures

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    The Delaware Supreme Court recently reversed the Court of Chancery's dismissal of challenges to Nordic Capital's acquisition of Inovalon, demonstrating the importance of full disclosure of financial adviser conflicts when a going-private merger seeks business judgment rule review, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • A Recipe For Growth Equity Investing In A Slow M&A Market

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    Carl Marcellino at Ropes & Gray discusses the factors bolstering appetite for growth equity fundraising in a depressed M&A market, and walks through the deal terms and other ingredients that set growth equity transactions apart from bread-and-butter venture capital investing.

  • PE-Healthcare Mergers Should Prepare For Challenges

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    State and federal regulators are increasingly imposing new requirements on healthcare transactions involving private equity partners, with mergers that would have drawn little scrutiny a few years ago now requiring a multijurisdictional risk analysis during the deal formation process, say attorneys at Stinson.

  • Behind Indiana's Broad New Healthcare Transactions Law

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    The high materiality threshold in Indiana's recently passed healthcare transaction law, coupled with the inclusion of private equity in its definition of healthcare entities, makes it one of the broadest state review regulations to date, say attorneys at DLA Piper.