Deals & Corporate Governance

  • July 02, 2024

    Healthcare Deals This Week: AbbVie, Samsung Bio And More

    From a carveout deal worth hundreds of millions of dollars to a handful of fresh funding rounds for companies in the space, this past week was a busy one for the healthcare industry.

  • July 02, 2024

    Pharma Co. Scores Exit In Investor Suit Over Primate Imports

    A Massachusetts federal judge tossed every claim in a proposed class action claiming that pharmaceutical company Charles River Laboratories and its executives concealed their involvement in the illegal importation of nonhuman primates for research, ruling that the disputed statements are not false or misleading.

  • July 02, 2024

    3rd Circ. Asked To Remand OT Suit After Justices' Ruling

    Three home care companies in overtime disputes with the U.S. Department of Labor urged the Third Circuit to reverse and remand a ruling that they waited too long to challenge a 2013 ruling on in-home caregivers' ability to earn minimum wage under a new U.S. Supreme Court precedent.

  • July 01, 2024

    NJ Hospital Dodges $14.7M In Damages Over Audits

    An accounting firm for the former operator of Hoboken University Medical Center has dodged more than $14.7 million in malpractice liability damages even though a New Jersey federal jury found it had violated professional accounting standards in audits of the financially struggling hospital.

  • July 01, 2024

    State AGs Get Stay Lifted In Generic Drug Pricing Litigation

    A Connecticut federal judge on Monday agreed to lift a partial discovery stay in a trio of generic drug pricing antitrust suits led by the attorneys general of New York and Connecticut, according to a short, text-only order posted to each of the case dockets.

  • July 01, 2024

    Delta Dental Wants Antitrust Claims Standard Decided Now

    Delta Dental has asked an Illinois federal judge to decide now — prior to ruling on a class certification bid — on the standard of review applicable in a case launched by service providers alleging the dental insurance system and its members are violating antitrust law through a $13 billion scheme to restrict competition.

  • June 28, 2024

    Chevron's End Is Just The Start For Energized Agency Foes

    By knocking down a powerful precedent that has towered over administrative law for 40 years, the U.S. Supreme Court's right wing Friday gave a crowning achievement to anti-agency attorneys. But for those attorneys, the achievement is merely a means to an end, and experts expect a litigation blitzkrieg to materialize quickly in the aftermath.

  • June 28, 2024

    In Chevron Case, Justices Trade One Unknown For Another

    The U.S. Supreme Court's decision to overrule a decades-old judicial deference doctrine may cause the "eternal fog of uncertainty" surrounding federal agency actions to dissipate and level the playing field in challenges of government policies, but lawyers warn it raises new questions over what rules courts must follow and how judges will implement them.

  • June 28, 2024

    Shkreli Asks High Court To Toss $64M Disgorgement Order

    Former pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli, who gained notoriety for hiking the price of HIV/AIDS medication before serving more than four years in prison for securities fraud, is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to toss a disgorgement order requiring him to pay $64 million for monopolistic price-gouging.

  • June 27, 2024

    State AGs Want Stay Lifted In Generic Drug Pricing Suit

    The attorneys general of New York and Connecticut have asked a federal judge to lift a partial discovery stay in three state-led generic drug pricing lawsuits against the pharmaceutical industry, saying it is no longer necessary because sentencing is complete in a parallel U.S. Department of Justice proceeding.

  • June 27, 2024

    Insurers Call Rite Aid Ch. 11 Opioid Deal Unfair

    Counsel for bankrupt drugstore chain Rite Aid told a New Jersey bankruptcy judge Thursday that it hopes to reach an agreement with at least some of its insurers on payments into an opioid settlement fund before closing arguments in its Chapter 11 plan confirmation Friday.

  • June 27, 2024

    AbbVie Buys Bowel Disease Biotech Celsius For $250M

    Chicago-based pharmaceutical company AbbVie said Thursday it has acquired Celsius Therapeutics Inc., a privately held clinical-stage biotechnology company developing therapies for patients with inflammatory disease, for $250 million.

  • June 25, 2024

    Cigna Objects To Ch. 11 Sale Of Western Pa. Nursing Homes

    Cigna Health and Life Insurance Co. filed an objection in Pennsylvania bankruptcy court to the proposed sale of a group of Pittsburgh-area nursing homes, seeking assurances that it will be warned if the nursing homes intend to leave behind their contracts with Cigna as part of the sale.

  • June 25, 2024

    Tracking The FTC's Latest Moves In Healthcare

    The Federal Trade Commission has its eye on the healthcare industry, targeting a range of deals the agency says would hurt competition and drive up prices. Law360 Healthcare Authority tracks recent FTC actions targeting hospital systems, digital health entities and pharmaceutical companies.

  • June 25, 2024

    Chancery OKs $71M Premier Deal, $14M Four-Firm Fee

    Shareholder attorneys led by Friedlander & Gorris who negotiated a $71 million settlement to end derivative Delaware Chancery Court litigation with healthcare-purchasing giant Premier Inc. will get $14 million for their efforts, the total fee award they sought.

  • June 21, 2024

    Drugmakers Decline To Drop Patent Listings After FTC Letters

    The eight pharmaceutical companies that the Federal Trade Commission warned in April may have improperly listed patents for its products in a key federal database have chosen not to remove any patents or otherwise alter their listings, according to a document released Friday.

  • June 21, 2024

    Ex-CEO Found Liable For $1 Now Seeks Atty Fees For Del. Suit

    The ex-CEO of a biopharma company who was found liable in 2021 for breaching his fiduciary duties but ordered to pay just $1 in damages after Delaware's Court of Chancery found that no real harm had been done is now suing for his attorney's fees and court costs.

  • June 21, 2024

    3 Firms Build $540M Take-Private Sale Of Healthcare Data Biz

    Digital health company Sharecare Inc. on Friday announced that it has agreed to be bought by healthcare-focused private equity firm Altaris LLC in a $540 million take-private deal built by three law firms.

  • June 21, 2024

    Atrium Accused Of Tanking $62M Medicare Advantage Plan

    An insurance provider that partnered with Atrium Health to offer a new Medicare Advantage plan is now suing for breach of contract, saying in a North Carolina state court complaint that Atrium tanked the rollout by refusing to engage in much-needed marketing efforts.

  • June 21, 2024

    Taxation With Representation: Travers Smith, Potamitis Vekris

    In this week's Taxation With Representation, RSK Group Ltd. gets a £500 million ($632 million) investment, Boston Scientific Corp. acquires Silk Road Medical Inc., Masdar takes a part of Terna Energy SA, and Tate & Lyle PLC buys CP Kelco from JM Huber Corp.

  • June 20, 2024

    $13B Antitrust Suit Is Class Cert 'Antithesis,' Delta Dental Says

    The nation's largest dental insurance system and its members have blasted service providers' bid for class treatment in multidistrict litigation targeting an alleged $13 billion antitrust scheme, telling an Illinois federal judge that the providers' case "is the very antithesis of a proper class action."

  • June 18, 2024

    Fla. Immune To Contract Suit Over COVID Tests, 4th Circ. Says

    The Fourth Circuit reversed on Tuesday a district court decision denying a motion to dismiss by a Florida state agency in a breach of contract case involving COVID-19 tests, finding the lower court erred in ruling that the state did not have sovereign immunity and remanding the case for further proceedings.

  • June 18, 2024

    Novant Drops NC Hospital Merger After 4th Circ. Pauses Deal

    Novant Health has abandoned its plans to purchase two North Carolina hospitals for $320 million after a split Fourth Circuit panel on Tuesday granted the Federal Trade Commission's bid for an emergency injunction putting the deal on hold indefinitely.

  • June 18, 2024

    Biotherapeutics Co. Hires Seasoned Atty As General Counsel

    Boston-based biotherapeutics company Seaport Therapeutics announced Tuesday that a life sciences and corporate attorney with more than two decades of experience in-house and in private practice was named its new general counsel.

  • June 18, 2024

    Latham Leads Boston Scientific On $1.16B Silk Road Deal

    Latham & Watkins-advised Boston Scientific Corp. said Tuesday it has agreed to acquire medical device maker Silk Road Medical Inc., represented by Wilson Sonsini, at an enterprise value of approximately $1.16 billion.

Expert Analysis

  • 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.

  • Highlights From The 2024 ABA Antitrust Spring Meeting

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    U.S. merger enforcement and cartels figured heavily in this year's American Bar Association spring antitrust meeting, where one key takeaway included news that the Federal Trade Commission's anticipated changes to the Hart-Scott-Rodino form may be less dramatic than many originally feared, say attorneys at Freshfields.

  • The Merger Cases That Will Matter At ABA Antitrust Meeting

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    While the American Bar Association's Antitrust Spring Meeting this week will cover all types of competition law issues in the U.S. and abroad, expect the federal agencies' recent track record in merger enforcement to be a key area of focus on the official panels and in cocktail party chatter, say attorneys at Freshfields.

  • Planning For Healthcare-Private Equity Antitrust Enforcement

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    U.S. antitrust agency developments could mean potential enforcement actions on healthcare-related acquisitions by private equity funds are on the way, and entities operating in this space should follow a series of practice tips, including early assessment of antitrust risks on both the state and federal level, say Ryan Quillian and John Kendrick at Covington.