Deals & Corporate Governance
-
February 28, 2025
J&J Talc Spinoff Wraps Two-Week Chapter 11 Trial
A marathon Chapter 11 trial for Johnson & Johnson's talc liability unit wrapped up Friday, with attorneys defending the $10 billion plan against competing efforts to toss the Texas bankruptcy.
-
February 28, 2025
Bioventus Hit With Del. Derivative Suit After NC Class Deal
A Bioventus Inc. stockholder sued 15 current and former directors and officers of the medical device venture in Delaware's Court of Chancery to recover for the company tens of millions in losses tied to alleged mismanagement and corporate duty failures over a two year period.
-
February 28, 2025
Taxation With Representation: Gibson Dunn, Skadden
In this week's Taxation With Representation, Blackstone acquires Safe Harbor Marinas, National Grid sells its green subsidiary in the U.S. to Brookfield, Apollo Global Management buys Bridge Investment Group Holdings Inc., and Teleflex splits into two publicly traded companies.
-
February 28, 2025
Goodwin, White & Case Build BridgeBio's $949M SPAC Deal
Clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company BridgeBio Oncology Therapeutics, advised by Goodwin Procter LLP, on Friday announced plans to go public via a merger with special purpose acquisition company Helix Acquisition Corp. II, advised by White & Case LLP, in a deal that gives the combined business an implied pro forma enterprise value of $949 million.
-
February 27, 2025
4th Circ. Rips 'Shaky At Best' Drug Price-Fixing Class Action
The Fourth Circuit backed the dismissal of a proposed class action accusing drug companies of conspiring to inflate the price of a drug for Huntington's disease, writing in the opinion that the allegations are "shaky at best," "sparsely pleaded" and "stretch civil RICO liability beyond its limits."
-
February 27, 2025
Lenders Can't Claim Ex-Mylan VP's $4M Insider Trade Penalty
Lenders who said they were owed money by a former Mylan vice president can't call dibs on any of the $4.3 million he was ordered to forfeit as part of his guilty plea to insider trading since they hadn't shown that they had a better claim to the money than the defendant or the government, a Pennsylvania federal judge has ruled.
-
February 27, 2025
Medical Device Co. Inks €760M Deal, Unveils Separation Plans
Medical device company Teleflex, advised by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, on Thursday announced that it will split into two separate, publicly traded entities, and that it will acquire Biotronik SE & Co.'s vascular intervention business for €760 million ($791.95 million).
-
February 25, 2025
FTC Probing $615M Healthcare Staffing Merger
Talent software and staffing company Aya Healthcare Inc.'s roughly $615 million bid to buy Cross Country Healthcare Inc. and take the staffing and recruitment company private hit a snag last week with a Federal Trade Commission merger probe that prevents the transaction from closing, for now.
-
February 25, 2025
WilmerHale, Cleary Steer $4.1B Thermo Fisher-Solventum Deal
WilmerHale and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP are the principal advisers on a new agreement for Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. to purchase the purification and filtration business of Solventum for $4.1 billion in cash, according to statements from the companies on Tuesday.
-
February 25, 2025
The Psychedelics Industry's Hopes And Worries Over RFK Jr.
Last fall, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. called out the "aggressive suppression of psychedelics." Many in the industry hope the new HHS head can build momentum for emerging therapies. Others worry his interest will do more harm than good.
-
February 24, 2025
CVC Sells Stake In India Hospital Chain To KKR For $400M
Private equity shop CVC on Monday announced that it has agreed to sell its majority stake in Indian oncology hospital chain Healthcare Global Enterprises to Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP-advised KKR for $400 million.
-
February 24, 2025
Steward Health Risking Patient Lives At Hospitals, Buyer Says
The buyer of eight Steward Health Care hospitals said the bankrupt company is putting patients' lives at risk by failing to provide funds and services it promised, urging a Texas federal judge to compel Steward to comply with contracts it signed as part of its hospital sales.
-
February 24, 2025
Skadden, Ropes & Gray Advising On 23andMe Buyout Bid
The CEO of 23andMe has teamed up with private equity firm New Mountain Capital on an offer to purchase and take the genetic testing company private at an equity value of approximately $74.7 million, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
-
February 21, 2025
Trump Blocked From Implementing Anti-DEI Orders, For Now
A Maryland federal judge on Friday temporarily barred the Trump administration from implementing the bulk of his executive orders aiming to slash diversity, equity and inclusion programs in the public and private sectors, ruling that the orders are likely unconstitutionally vague and illegally restrict free speech.
-
February 21, 2025
Eli Lilly Has Exclusivity Over Weight Loss Drug, FDA Says
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration asked a Texas federal court to reject a request for an injunction that would allow compounding pharmacies to produce a lucrative weight loss drug, saying the agency based its decision on sound facts and it was within its authority.
-
February 21, 2025
Bank Says Nostrum's Second Investment Banker Unnecessary
Citizens Bank, a creditor of New Jersey drugmaker Nostrum Laboratories Inc., objected to Nostrum's request to retain another investment banker in its Chapter 11 case, arguing that Raymond James is already serving in that role and that the additional $1 million in retention costs provides no "discernible benefit" to the debtor.
-
February 19, 2025
Olshan-Led Investor Picks Proxy Fight With Healthcare REIT
Land & Buildings Investment Management LLC, guided by Olshan Frome Wolosky LLP, said it nominated two candidates to National Health Investors Inc.'s board of directors on Wednesday, arguing that conflicts of interest plague the real estate investment trust's leadership team.
-
February 18, 2025
Novo Nordisk Queues Up $830M Suit Over Disappointing Drug
Novo Nordisk is set to initiate an $830 million arbitration claim in New York accusing Singaporean biopharmaceutical company KBP Biosciences of misleading the Danish drugmaker about the potential of a new hypertension drug it subsequently purchased, according to an order from a Singapore court made public on Tuesday.
-
February 14, 2025
Digital Health Co. Beats Some Claims In SPAC Investor Suit
A New Jersey federal judge has dismissed, with leave to amend, claims in an investor suit against a blank check company that took digital health equipment venture Butterfly Network Inc. public, finding that some of the shares the plaintiffs purchased are not traceable to the registration statement at issue in the suit.
-
February 13, 2025
Mallinckrodt Fails To Halt Airgas' Generic Nitric Oxide Drug
A Delaware federal judge has rejected Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals' attempt to block French industrial gas company Airgas Healthcare from selling a generic version of its inhaled nitric oxide treatment, saying Mallinckrodt didn't show enough evidence that Airgas infringed its patents or that it would suffer irreparable harm.
-
February 13, 2025
Paul Hastings, Cooley Lead Obesity-Focused Aardvark's IPO
Obesity-focused Aardvark Therapeutics Inc. began trading Thursday after pricing a $94 million initial public offering at the bottom of its range, represented by Paul Hastings LLP and underwriters' counsel Cooley LLP, joining a string of biotechnology firms to go public recently.
-
February 12, 2025
Bausch Health Beats Suit Over 'Faking' Financial Stability
Pharmaceutical company Bausch Health Cos. Inc. and its top brass have beaten, for now, a proposed class action accusing them of misleading shareholders about threats to the company's financial stability, with a New Jersey federal judge finding Wednesday that most of the challenged statements in the complaint are inactionable.
-
February 12, 2025
Supply Co. Files Failsafe $387M Suit Amid Threat Of Dismissal
A medical supply procurement company has re-upped claims that a pharmaceutical middleman cut it out of a billion-dollar deal with the U.K. government to sell COVID-19 tests after newly unveiled information threatened to derail the long-running litigation.
-
February 11, 2025
Takeaways From This Week's Healthcare Earnings
A host of pharmaceutical companies posted earnings this past week, with executives touching on near term growth plans and potential cost-cutting measures on calls with investors.
-
February 11, 2025
Research Org Faces Investor Suit Over Customer Cost-Cutting
Clinical research organization Icon PLC has been hit with a proposed shareholder class action in New York federal court, alleging it misled investors about a slowdown in demand the company experienced due to customers implementing drastic cost-reduction measures that involved research and development expenditures.
Expert Analysis
-
The Most-Read Legal Industry Law360 Guest Articles Of 2023
A range of legal industry topics drew readers' attention in Law360's Expert Analysis section this year, from associate retention strategies to ethical billing practices.
-
How SEC And NY Cyber Reporting Rules Affect Key Industries
The new U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and New York State Department of Financial Services cybersecurity disclosure requirements, and their competing obligations, reveal the increasing complexity for organizations evaluating and reacting to cybersecurity incidents — particularly those in the healthcare and financial services industries, say attorneys at Manatt.
-
Trends Shaping The 2024 Consumer Packaged Goods Industry
The better-for-you segment within the consumer packaged goods industry is poised for a significant evolution in 2024, and industry players must remain agile and adaptive through M&A activities, legal considerations, sustainability initiatives and changing technology, says Christopher Cain at Foley & Lardner.
-
Attorneys' Busiest Times Can Be Business Opportunities
Attorneys who resolve to grow their revenue and client base in 2024 should be careful not to abandon their goals when they get too busy with client work, because these periods of zero bandwidth can actually be a catalyst for future growth, says Amy Drysdale at Alchemy Consulting.
-
In The World Of Legal Ethics, 10 Trends To Note From 2023
Lucian Pera at Adams and Reese and Trisha Rich at Holland & Knight identify the top legal ethics trends from 2023 — including issues related to hot documents, artificial intelligence and cybersecurity — that lawyers should be aware of to put their best foot forward.
-
How Attorneys Can Be More Efficient This Holiday Season
Attorneys should consider a few key tips to speed up their work during the holidays so they can join the festivities — from streamlining the document review process to creating similar folder structures, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.
-
Children's Book Writing Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Becoming a children's book author has opened doors to incredible new experiences of which I barely dared to dream, but the process has also changed my life by serving as a reminder that strong writing, networking and public speaking skills are hugely beneficial to a legal career, says Shaunna Bailey at Sheppard Mullin.
-
How Clients May Use AI To Monitor Attorneys
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
Artificial intelligence tools will increasingly enable clients to monitor and evaluate their counsel’s activities, so attorneys must clearly define the terms of engagement and likewise take advantage of the efficiencies offered by AI, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.
-
ESG Around The World: Singapore
Singapore is keen to establish itself as a leading international financial center and a key player in the sustainable finance ecosystem, and key initiatives led by its government and other regulatory bodies have helped the Asian nation progress from its initially guarded attitude toward ESG investment and reporting, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
-
The Pop Culture Docket: Judge D'Emic On Moby Grape
The 1968 Moby Grape song "Murder in My Heart for the Judge" tells the tale of a fictional defendant treated with scorn by the judge, illustrating how much the legal system has evolved in the past 50 years, largely due to problem-solving courts and the principles of procedural justice, says Kings County Supreme Court Administrative Judge Matthew D'Emic.
-
Navigating Asset Tracing Challenges In Bankruptcy
A Virginia court’s recent ruling in Health Diagnostic Laboratory Inc.'s bankruptcy highlights the heightened demand for asset tracing and the strategic use of the lowest intermediate balance rule in recovering funds from commingled accounts, says Daniel Lowenthal at Patterson Belknap.
-
Performing Music Makes Me A Better Lawyer
The discipline of performing live music has directly and positively influenced my effectiveness as a litigator — serving as a reminder that practice, intuition and team building are all important elements of a successful law practice, says Jeff Wakolbinger at Bryan Cave.
-
'Patient' Definition Ruling Raises Discount Drug Questions
A South Carolina federal court's recent decision in Genesis Health Care v. Becerra supports a broader definition of a "patient" eligible to receive discounted drugs under the Section 340B program, but raises a host of novel questions regarding how the decision will affect covered entities and enforcement actions, say attorneys at McDermott.