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Life Sciences

  • May 23, 2025

    Biotech Insider Traded On $3.5B Novartis Deal, Feds Say

    A former board member at Chinook Therapeutics orchestrated an insider-trading scheme after learning about Novartis' plans to purchase the biotech company for $3.5 billion in 2023, according to an indictment announced Friday.

  • May 23, 2025

    Class Of Health Plans Certified In Avandia Marketing MDL

    A Pennsylvania federal judge has certified a class of health plans in multidistrict litigation over GlaxoSmithKline's alleged deceptive marketing of the drug Avandia in which the plans claim they wouldn't have paid higher premiums for the drug if they'd known about its potential cardiovascular risks.

  • May 23, 2025

    My So-Called Retirement: Some IP Lawyers Just Can't Quit

    When patent partner Terry Rea set out to retire, the onetime acting director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office had her eyes on the independence that retirement promises — flexible hours, fewer deadlines and less stress over having lots of people counting on you.

  • May 23, 2025

    Cooley Hires 'Next-Gen' Boston Labor & Employment Partner

    A Choate Hall & Stewart LLP partner has joined Cooley LLP's labor and employment practice and global litigation department in Boston.

  • May 23, 2025

    Ballard Spahr Adds IP Transactions Pro From DLA Piper

    Ballard Spahr LLP announced Thursday that its New York office has gained a life science and climate change-focused corporate lawyer with a background in licensing and other intellectual property transactions from DLA Piper.

  • May 23, 2025

    Insulet Foe Rips $30M Atty Fee Ask As 'Over-Lawyered'

    A South Korean medical device maker told a Massachusetts federal judge that rival Insulet's request for $30 million in attorney fees following a $60 million trade secrets judgment should be denied, calling that amount "exorbitant" and saying Insulet "consistently over-lawyered disputes."

  • May 22, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Backs Pfizer Win Against Gene Therapy Patents

    The Federal Circuit on Thursday sided with the Patent Trial and Appeal Board's findings that a pair of patents covering a new kind of experimental gene therapy to treat hemophilia were invalid, handing a win to patent challenger Pfizer.

  • May 22, 2025

    Senators Unveil DNA Privacy Bill Amid 23andMe's Ch. 11 Sale

    A bipartisan group of U.S. senators on Thursday introduced a bill designed to safeguard customers' genetic information in bankruptcy cases, saying 23andMe's plan to sell users' DNA data to a pharmaceutical company during its Chapter 11 raises new concerns surrounding consumer privacy.

  • May 22, 2025

    Calif. Docs Bring FDA Stem Cell Regulation Fight To Top Court

    Two California clinics that provide stem cell treatments are urging the U.S. Supreme Court to review a Ninth Circuit panel's finding that their treatments are "drugs" subject to Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act regulations.

  • May 22, 2025

    Justices Urged To Undo Denial Of Fast Track For Gastro Drug

    Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse the Food and Drug Administration's decision denying fast-track approval for its gastroparesis drug tradipitant, saying it meets the statutory standard for fast-track review as a new treatment with the "potential to address unmet medical needs."

  • May 22, 2025

    EpiPen Direct Buyers, Mylan Get Final OK On Antitrust Deal

    Mylan Pharmaceuticals' $73.5 million settlement with a class of direct EpiPen buyers has received final approval from a Kansas federal judge, closing out claims from institutional drug resellers that Mylan worked with Pfizer to forestall an EpiPen generic from hitting the market and artificially inflating prices for the emergency injectable.

  • May 22, 2025

    Manufacturer Seeks Over $19M In Beryllium Release Coverage

    A medical device manufacturer accused a Zurich unit of breach of contract and bad faith in Massachusetts federal court, seeking at least $19 million in damages after it said storms caused an "unprecedented dispersal" of beryllium at one of its plants in the United Kingdom.

  • May 22, 2025

    Judge Asks If DEI Is Now 'Homogeneity, Inequity And Exclusion'

    A Massachusetts federal judge considering a challenge to the Trump administration's cuts to hundreds of National Institutes of Health grants pressed the U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday for its definition of diversity, equity and inclusion, at one point asking hypothetically whether the government's policy is now "homogeneity, inequity and exclusion."

  • May 22, 2025

    Conn. AG Targets 'Bootleg' Weight Loss Drug Sellers

    Connecticut has launched a consumer protection lawsuit in state court against a Florida-based company and its owner, accusing them of peddling untested and unsafe, research-level, "bootleg" GLP-1 weight loss drugs to customers.

  • May 22, 2025

    Sanofi To Acquire Goodwin-Led US Biotech Biz For $470M

    Drugmaker Sanofi said Thursday that it has agreed to acquire Vigil Neuroscience, a biotechnology company specializing in neurodegenerative diseases, for approximately $470 million to give it a potential new medicine for Alzheimer's disease in a deal guided by Goodwin Procter.

  • May 21, 2025

    FTC Urges 8th Circ. Not To Pause In-House PBM Case

    The Eighth Circuit should once again say no to a request to pause the Federal Trade Commission's in-house case accusing three pharmacy benefit managers of hiking up the price of insulin to line their own pockets, the agency has told the appellate court.

  • May 21, 2025

    Squires Talks Fortress, PTAB Invalidations In Senate Hearing

    The Trump administration's nominee for U.S. Patent and Trademark Office director had his moment before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, where he downplayed his controversial connections to litigation finance giant Fortress Investment Group and raised concerns that too many bad patents were being issued.

  • May 21, 2025

    9th Circ. Judge Asks If Apple's Watch Updates 'Ice Out' Rivals

    Two Ninth Circuit judges appeared skeptical Wednesday of Apple Inc.'s arguments against reviving an antitrust suit brought by medical monitoring startup AliveCor Inc. after Apple blocked third-party access to medical data on the Apple Watch, with one judge asking rhetorically whether a "marginal" improvement by Apple could actually be a way to "ice out" competition.

  • May 21, 2025

    Judge Mulls National Scope Of Bid To Restore COVID Grants

    A Washington, D.C., federal judge Wednesday mulled whether it would be appropriate to issue a nationwide injunction blocking the termination of $11 billion public health grants set aside under COVID-era laws in a lawsuit brought by four local governments and a public sector union.

  • May 21, 2025

    AbbVie Gets Victory In Allergan Shareholder Suit Upheld

    An Illinois state appellate panel said Wednesday that a trial court properly dismissed a shareholder class action against biopharmaceutical company AbbVie Inc. that accused the drugmaker of issuing unregistered shares to investors after acquiring Irish pharmaceutical company Allergan.

  • May 21, 2025

    GOP FTC Renews Calls For Orange Book Patent Delistings

    The now-Republican controlled Federal Trade Commission again called on Teva, Novartis, Mylan and other drugmakers to remove patents from a key federal database that partially insulates their drugs from generic competition, arguing Wednesday the patents cover "devices," not drugs, and thus don't warrant such protection.

  • May 21, 2025

    Kronos Bio Shareholder Says Sale Unfairly Benefits Execs

    Kronos Bio is facing a new shareholder suit claiming its plan to be acquired by another biopharmaceutical company will unfairly entitle Kronos executives to "lucrative" benefits unavailable to public shareholders.

  • May 21, 2025

    Device Maker Who Evaded Tax Gets 2 Years In Prison

    A Florida man who sold millions of dollars worth of medical devices that federal prosecutors said were unproven to work was sentenced to two years in prison for evading taxes and ordered to pay $2.3 million in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service.

  • May 21, 2025

    Walgreens Ducks False Ad Suit Over Mucus Relief Meds

    An Illinois federal judge on Tuesday dismissed a potential class action accusing Walgreens of misleading customers by selling them over-the-counter mucus relief medicine containing benzene without warning them of that risk, saying the claims are preempted by a federal drug safety law.

  • May 20, 2025

    Flo Users Get Class Cert. In Google, Meta Data-Sharing Suit

    A California federal judge has granted class status to users of the menstrual cycle tracking app developed by Flo Health Inc. in a suit accusing the company of unlawfully sharing their personal health information with Google and Meta, finding that the defendants' opposition to this move lacked clarity and support.

Expert Analysis

  • How Citizen Petitions Have Affected Drug Competition

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    In light of recent citizen petitions and proposed legislation regulating such petitions, Omar Robles at Managing Health analyzes the statistics of the extent to which citizen petitions have been filed, and to what extent they have delayed competition in prescription pharmaceuticals.

  • 5 Keys To Building Stronger Attorney-Client Relationships

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    Attorneys are often focused on being seen as the expert, but bonding with clients and prospects by sharing a few key personal details provides the basis for a caring, trusted and profoundly deeper business relationship, says Deb Feder at Feder Development.

  • Drug Kickback Ruling Will Make FCA Liability Harder To Prove

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    The First Circuit's ruling in U.S. v. Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, requiring the government to prove but-for causation to establish False Claims Act liability based on violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute, raises the bar for FCA enforcement and deepens a circuit split that the U.S. Supreme Court may need to resolve, say attorneys at Baker Donelson.

  • Assessing PE Risk After Mass. False Claims Act Amendments

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    A law recently passed in Massachusetts amends the commonwealth's False Claims Act by dramatically expanding potential liability for private equity firms and investors, underscoring the importance of robust diligence and risk assessments for private equity firms conducting transactions in the commonwealth, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

  • What Trump Actions Mean For Federal Research Funding

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    New guidance from the National Institutes of Health represents a massive policy shift regarding federal funding for researchers at institutions of higher education, contributing to a perfect storm of significant resource shortfalls in upcoming years, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • How Courts Can Filter Nonmeritorious Claims In Mass Torts

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    Nonmeritorious claims have been a key obstacle to settlement in many recent high-profile mass torts, but courts may be able to use tools they already have to solve this problem, says Samir Parikh at Wake Forest University.

  • Series

    Racing Corvettes Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    The skills I use when racing Corvettes have enhanced my legal practice in several ways, because driving, like practicing law, requires precision, awareness and a good set of brakes — complete with the wisdom to know how and when to use them, says Kat Mateo at Olshan Frome.

  • Opinion

    Attorneys Must Act Now To Protect Judicial Independence

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    Given the Trump administration's recent moves threatening the independence of the judiciary, including efforts to impeach judges who ruled against executive actions, lawyers must protect the rule of law and resist attempts to dilute the judicial branch’s authority, says attorney Bhavleen Sabharwal.

  • Rethinking 'No Comment' For Clients Facing Public Crises

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    “No comment” is no longer a cost-free or even a viable public communications strategy for companies in crisis, and counsel must tailor their guidance based on a variety of competing factors to help clients emerge successfully, says Robert Bowers at Moore & Van Allen.

  • As Failure-To-Warn Preemption Wanes, Justices May Weigh In

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    Federal preemption of state failure-to-warn claims has long been a powerful defense in strict liability tort cases, but is now under attack in litigation over the weedkiller Roundup and other products — so the scope and application of preemption may require clarification by the U.S. Supreme Court, says Michael Sena at Segal McCambridge.

  • How Design Thinking Can Help Lawyers Find Purpose In Work

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    Lawyers everywhere are feeling overwhelmed amid mass government layoffs, increasing political instability and a justice system stretched to its limits — but a design-thinking framework can help attorneys navigate this uncertainty and find meaning in their work, say law professors at the University of Michigan.

  • The Fate Of Biden-Era Clinical Study Guidance Under Trump

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    Draft guidance about the study of sex and gender differences in medical product development issued by the outgoing Biden administration currently faces significant uncertainty and litigation potential due to the Trump administration's executive orders and other actions, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • Trending At The PTAB: Insights From 2024 Fed. Circ. Statistics

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    Looking at stats from the Federal Circuit's decisions in 219 Patent Trial and Appeal Board appeals last year sheds light on potential trends and strategy considerations that could improve appeals' chances of success, say attorneys at Finnegan.

  • Opinion

    Weight Drug Suits Highlight Need For Legal Work On Safety

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    The rapid ascent of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists like Ozempic has revolutionized diabetes management and weight loss — but legal wrangling over issues including off-label prescriptions, side effects and compounded versions underscores lawyers' roles in protecting patient safety, says attorney Gregg Goldfarb.

  • 10 Issues To Watch In Aerospace And Defense Contracting

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    This year, in addition to evergreen developments driven by national security priorities, disruptive new technologies and competition with rival powers, federal contractors will see significant disruptions driven by the new administration’s efforts to reduce government spending, regulation and the size of the federal workforce, say attorneys at Thompson Hine.

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