Deals & Corporate Governance
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May 13, 2024
Biogen Investors Seek Class Cert. In Alzheimer's Drug Suit
A proposed class of Biogen shareholders urged a Massachusetts federal court to certify their now-revived class action alleging the drugmaker made misleading statements about a deficient Alzheimer's drug, arguing it can sufficiently lead the suit with Block & Leviton LLP as class counsel.
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May 13, 2024
2nd Circ. Affirms Dismissal Of Bystolic Antitrust Suit
The Second Circuit issued its first decision under the high court's Actavis "pay for delay" ruling on Monday, affirming the dismissal of a case alleging that an AbbVie predecessor delayed competition for its hypertension treatment Bystolic through deals with several generic makers.
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May 13, 2024
Ex-Police Chief Gets 3 Months For Alexion Insider Trading
The former police chief of a town in Massachusetts was sentenced Monday to three months in prison after pleading guilty to trading on confidential information about a pending Alexion Pharmaceuticals merger that he said was provided by a "lifelong friend."
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May 10, 2024
Atty Says Panoramic Fired Her For Raising Compliance Issues
Panoramic Health faces a wrongful termination suit filed Thursday in Colorado federal court by its former assistant general counsel who claims she was fired after raising concerns about its alleged noncompliance with federal anti-kickback statutes and regulations over its federally funded kidney care contracting program.
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May 09, 2024
Masimo Makes Offer To End Activist Politan's Proxy Contest
Medical technology company Masimo Corp. revealed Thursday that it is willing to appoint one of the director nominees put forth by activist investment firm Politan Capital Management LP in exchange for the company dropping its proxy fight, though Politan signaled distaste with the proposed deal.
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May 09, 2024
DOJ Task Force To Target Healthcare Monopoly, Collusion
The U.S. Department of Justice's Antitrust Division sharpened its focus Thursday on healthcare platforms that combine doctors with insurers, data and more in what the administration's top competition official called the "alarming" accumulation of assets.
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May 09, 2024
Hospital REIT Sees $736M Loss After Tenant's Ch. 11 Filing
Medical Properties Trust, a healthcare real estate investment trust, lost $736 million in the first quarter of the year from the financial collapse of Steward Health Care, a major tenant, and the write-off of an international joint venture, executives said on May 9.
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May 08, 2024
Shockwave Medical Investor Challenges $13B Deal With J&J
A shareholder of cardiovascular treatment company Shockwave Medical Inc. is attempting to halt the company's "unfair" $13 billion proposed transaction with Johnson & Johnson by filing a securities suit, saying the transaction will only benefit company insiders and damage public shareholders.
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May 07, 2024
Novant CEO Vows To Improve Hospitals Facing FTC Scrutiny
Novant Health kicked off its defense Tuesday in the Federal Trade Commission's $320 million merger challenge with testimony from its longtime CEO, who vocalized the health system's promise to reinvest in the two struggling hospitals at the center of the case.
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May 07, 2024
Takeaways From This Week's Healthcare Earnings
First-quarter results from the healthcare industry found rising biotech confidence boosted by better-than-expected sales. Major insurers were less enthusiastic. Here, Law360 has the big takeaways from last week's earnings.
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May 07, 2024
$55M Hospital Merger Suit Deal OK'd, UHC Objection Rejected
An Illinois federal judge has given final approval to a $55 million class settlement, with $23.5 million in legal costs and attorney fees, resolving patient antitrust claims over a NorthShore University HealthSystem merger, all while finding that United Healthcare Services had no standing to object to the deal.
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May 07, 2024
Meet The Weil Attys Guiding Steward Health's Ch. 11
A team of attorneys from Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP is representing Steward Health Care System LLC as the embattled hospital operator navigates Chapter 11 in a Texas bankruptcy court with more than $1 billion in debt.
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May 07, 2024
What Walmart Health's Shutdown May Mean For Retail Clinics
In the wake of major closure announcements by Walgreens and Walmart, some experts see signs of a larger retreat in brick-and-mortar healthcare clinics as retailers are buffeted by high overhead fees, failed expansion plans and complex business models.
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May 06, 2024
Biotech Co. Wants To Appeal Red Cross Antitrust Immunity
A biotech company has told a Massachusetts federal court that giving the American Red Cross immunity from claims that it smothered competition in the platelet bacteria mitigation market is unprecedented and leaves the organization free to fix prices or buy up its competitors.
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May 06, 2024
Texas Health Coordinator Urges Nonprofit Status At 5th Circ.
A Texas company that coordinates healthcare for chronically ill patients should not be barred from claiming tax-exempt status, it told the Fifth Circuit on Monday, arguing that the U.S. Tax Court applied an incorrect legal standard when it revoked the group's status.
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May 06, 2024
Latham & Watkins, Simpson Thacher Steer Healthcare JV
Healthcare Realty Trust Inc. and KKR announced on Monday that the two have entered a joint venture to own and invest in quality medical outpatient buildings, in a deal guided by Latham & Watkins LLP and Simpson Thacher & Barlett LLP.
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May 06, 2024
Hospital Chain Steward Health Hits Ch. 11 With Over $1B Debt
Embattled hospital operator Steward Health Care filed for Chapter 11 protection Monday in a Texas bankruptcy court with more than $1 billion in debt, blaming rising costs and falling government reimbursement rates.
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May 03, 2024
Hospital In Novant Merger Beset By Staff Turnover, Court Told
The Federal Trade Commission and two healthcare companies used witness testimony Friday to paint competing pictures of a North Carolina hospital at the center of a $320 million merger dispute: one in which the hospital has focused on making quality improvements, and another where it's been plagued by poor ratings and high staff turnover.
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May 03, 2024
FTC Requests Additional Info On $16.5B Novo-Catalent Deal
The Federal Trade Commission is seeking additional information on Novo Holdings' planned $16.5 billion acquisition of pharmaceutical services company Catalent in order to examine whether the blockbuster deal passes antitrust muster, according to a Friday securities filing.
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May 03, 2024
Taxation With Representation: Skadden, Wachtell, Davis Polk
In this week's Taxation With Representation, L'Occitane International said its executive director and chair is leading an offer to buy the company's shares he doesn't already own, UMB Financial agreed to purchase Heartland Financial USA, Medline said it agreed to acquire Ecolab's global surgical solutions business and The Mosaic Co. said it agreed to sell its stake in a phosphate production joint venture.
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May 02, 2024
7th Circ. Mostly Backs Ill. Home Health Kickbacks Judgment
The Seventh Circuit on Thursday largely left intact an Illinois federal judge's $6 million ruling that a home health care company broke federal kickback laws, refusing to reverse the lower court's liability finding but directing it to ensure its damages award was calculated correctly.
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May 02, 2024
Pharma. Co. Wants Ex-Director To Stop Poaching Customers
A pharmaceutical company has doubled down on its bid to stop a former director from soliciting customers for a rival drugmaker, saying he's trying to twist words in his contract and make up excuses for allegedly stealing trade secrets following his termination.
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May 02, 2024
Skin Care Drug Co. Gets OK For Ch. 11 Wind-Down Plan
A Delaware bankruptcy judge on Thursday said she would approve the unopposed and unanimously approved Chapter 11 wind-down plans of the company previously known as Timber Pharmaceuticals Inc.
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May 02, 2024
Freshfields-Led Novartis Inks $1.75B Cancer Drug Co. Buyout
Novartis AG said Thursday it has agreed to buy U.S. radiopharmaceutical company Mariana Oncology in a transaction worth up to $1.75 billion, as the Swiss pharmaceutical giant moves to bolster its precision nuclear medicine portfolio.
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May 01, 2024
Future Is 'Bleak' If Judge Rejects Novant Merger, Court Hears
Novant Health on Wednesday sought to portray itself as the "last best hope" to save two struggling hospitals in North Carolina at the start of a multiday hearing in which the Federal Trade Commission is asking the court to squelch Novant's proposed $320 million merger.
Expert Analysis
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Joint Ventures Given More Edge In Set-Aside Contract Awards
The recent Court of Federal Claims decision in SH Synergy prompted the General Services Administration to remold proposal evaluation schemes to favor mentor-protégé joint ventures, a business structure that has taken over the world of set-aside governmentwide acquisition contracts, say Roger Abbott and Stephen Ramaley at Miles & Stockbridge.
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New Health Data Compliance Considerations For Pa. Lawyers
Given the regularity with which attorneys handle private health information, it is important for Pennsylvania firms to understand recent significant amendments to the state's data breach law, which address information not currently covered by federal law, says Mark Mattioli at Post & Schell.
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Ghosting In BigLaw: How To Come Back From Lack Of Feedback
Junior associates can feel powerless when senior colleagues cut off contact instead of providing useful feedback, but young attorneys can get back on track by focusing on practical professional development and reexamining their career priorities, says Rachel Patterson at Orrick.
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Conn. Certificate-Of-Need Law Will Bring Greater Efficiency
A new Connecticut law benefits health care organizations by establishing more concrete deadlines and requirements for the state's certificate-of-need law enforcer, and allows the enforcement agency to carry out its duties more efficiently, say attorneys at Robinson & Cole.
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Steps To Success For Senior Associates
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
Adriana Paris at Rissman Barrett discusses the increased responsibilities and opportunities that becoming a senior associate brings and what attorneys in this role should prioritize to flourish in this stressful but rewarding next level in their careers.
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Legal Profession Must Do More For Lawyers With Disabilities
At the start of Disability Pride month, Rosalyn Richter at Arnold & Porter looks at why lawyers with disabilities are significantly underrepresented in private practice, asserting that law firms and other employers must do more to conquer the implicit bias that deters attorneys from seeking accommodations.
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Scope Of FTC's Health Info Enforcement May Expand
The Federal Trade Commission's proposed amendments to the Health Breach Notification Rule signal the agency's mounting efforts to regulate consumer health information beyond the reaches of the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act, which does not cover many recent health apps and technologies, say Jodi Daniel and Brandon Ge at Crowell & Moring.
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Appellate Funding Disclosure: No Mandate Is Right Choice
The Advisory Committee on Appellate Rules' recent decision, forgoing a mandatory disclosure rule for litigation funding in federal appeals, is prudent, as third-party funding is only involved in a minuscule number of federal cases, and courts have ample authority to obtain funding information if necessary, says Stewart Ackerly at Statera Capital.
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How NY Law Affects Scrutiny Of Health Care PE Transactions
A recently passed New York law will strengthen pretransanction notification requirements for health care entities — particularly those backed by private equity — but contains several ambiguities that will hopefully be clarified before the law takes effect in August, say attorneys at Norton Rose.
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How Attys Can Avoid Exposing Their Firms To Cyberattacks
Attorneys are the weakest link in their firms' cyberdefenses because hackers often exploit the gap between individuals’ work and personal cybersecurity habits, but there are some steps lawyers can take to reduce the risks they create for their employers, say Mark Hurley and Carmine Cicalese at Digital Privacy & Protection.
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Virginia 'Rocket Docket' Slowdown Is Likely A Blip
After being the fastest or second-fastest federal civil trial court for 14 straight years, the Eastern District of Virginia has slid to 18th place, but the rocket docket’s statistical tumble doesn't mean the district no longer maintains a speedy civil docket, says Robert Tata at Hunton.
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A Look At 2023's Major NLRB Developments Thus Far
Over the last six months, the National Labor Relations Board has broadened its interpretation and enforcement of the National Labor Relations Act, including increasing penalties and efforts to prohibit restrictive covenants and confidentiality agreements, say Eve Klein and Elizabeth Mincer at Duane Morris.
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Preparing For Md. Adult-Use Cannabis: Licensing Provisions
As the launch of Maryland’s adult-use cannabis market quickly approaches, current and prospective businesses will need to understand key provisions and limitations related to license conversion, qualifying partnerships, social equity applications and microlicenses, say Seth Gitner and Jonathan Havens at Saul Ewing.