May 21, 2019

WASHINGTON—Covington advised Merck & Co., Inc., in its definitive agreement under which Merck, through a subsidiary, will acquire privately held Peloton Therapeutics, Inc. in exchange for an upfront payment of $1.05 billion in cash. In addition, Peloton shareholders will be eligible to receive a further $1.15 billion contingent upon successful achievement of ...

May 20, 2019

NEW YORK—Covington advised LifeArc, a UK-based medical research charity, on its monetization of a portion of its royalties relating to Keytruda® for $1.297 billion (approximately £1 billion). This royalty monetization is the largest single-product royalty monetization ever done by a non-profit. The transaction closed on May 10, 2019, the culmination of efforts ...

May 15, 2019, Commercial Dispute Resolution

Mark Mosier spoke with Commercial Dispute Resolution about a Supreme Court case involving the amount of deference given to federal agencies by the federal courts in deciding legal challenges to ambiguous regulations. Mr. Mosier says “The question whether courts will defer to agency decisions is critical for any business regulated by the federal government, which ...

May 13, 2019

NEW YORK—Covington advised Bayer in a definitive agreement to sell its Coppertone™ business to Beiersdorf AG, a provider of skin care products, for $550 million. Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the life science fields of health care and nutrition. Its products and services are designed to benefit people by supporting efforts to overcome ...

May 13, 2019, Law360

Michael Wagner spoke with Law360 about the Supreme Court’s ruling in Cochise Consultancy Inc. v. U.S., a case determining the statute of limitations in False Claim Act cases. Mr. Wagner says, "In theory, the Court's ruling could incentivize qui tam plaintiffs to wait years to bring their claims, in the hopes of allowing their potential recovery to increase. This ...