Covington: Drawing on Life Science Sector Depth to Tackle Complexity

Covington: Drawing on Life Science Sector Depth to Tackle Complexity

March 8, 2018, Biotech and Money

James Gubbins, Lucinda Osborne, and Brian Kelly are quoted in a Biotech and Money article providing an overview of Covington's Life Sciences practice and discussing the legal implications of issues facing the sector. “Having an international practice, having a team in London, on [the U.S.] East Coast and West Coast, and in Asia, who encompass that regulatory capability, IP capability, and corporate expertise, means we can provide help and assistance on a real global basis,” explains Gubbins. “Our clients, from a very early stage, are very international in their outlook.” Osborne adds, “We inevitably work on very aggressive timelines, so it can be very helpful to have people across office teams that are able to keep everything moving." She says, “The firm works very hard to keep the culture of one firm, one approach."

Commenting on macro events that impact the life sciences sector, Kelly points to Brexit. Brexit brings with it some key considerations for life sciences companies, both large and small. Kelly explains, “One is whether the company that holds [EU] drug approval is based in the UK or has a supply chain that goes through the UK. Because [the UK] will be outside of Europe, that will have an impact on their ability to continue marketing in the EU. The other concern, which is particularly relevant for the rare diseases space where there may be only a handful of patients, is the UK will be overlooked in terms of classic phase one launch markets in Europe.”