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Edward C. Britton

Senior Counsel

Washington +1 202 662 5248

  • About
  • Representative Matters
  • Credentials
  • About

    Edward Britton is a corporate senior counsel resident in the firm’s Washington office. He concentrates in strategic licensing, partnering, and joint ventures; supply, distribution, research, and other commercial agreements; and mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures. His practice emphasizes multi-jurisdictional transactions, and he has broad experience in the types of issues that such transactions raise. He also regularly advises clients on corporate and governance issues and assists clients on general compliance matters.

    From 2003 to 2008, Ed was resident in the firm’s London office, where he served as managing partner.

    The clients with which Ed works are in a wide range of industries, including life sciences, consumer products, and government services.

    Ed has particular experience in meeting the specialized corporate, commercial and transactional need of clients in the life sciences industry. For over 25 years he has worked closely with life sciences clients on corporate, commercial, and strategic matters.

    Areas of Expertise

  • Practices and Industries
  • Representative Matters
    • Salix Pharmaceuticals (now part of Bausch Health) in its $2.6 billion acquisition of Nasdaq-listed Santarus, Inc.; in its acquisition of assets from Olon S.p.A.; in its $300 million acquisition of Oceana Therapeutics; in its worldwide collaboration with RedHill Biopharma for purgative technology; in its acquisition of worldwide rights to the Relistor® product from Progenics Pharmaceuticals; in its worldwide collaboration with Photocure ASA for the development and commercialization of a photodynamic diagnostic technology; in settlements of Hatch-Waxman litigation against Lupin, Novel Laboratories and Actavis; in its collaboration with Lupin in respect of rifaximin-containing products; in its worldwide collaboration with Napo Pharmaceuticals for the development and commercialization of crofelemer as an anti-diarrhetic, together with a related equity investment by Salix in Napo, and a related manufacture and supply agreement between Salix and Glenmark Pharmaceuticals; and in respect of numerous supply, manufacturing, clinical trial, services, and other agreements.
    • Boehringer Ingelheim in its $880 million sale of Fort Dodge and related divestures of animal health products.
    • UCB in its $2.1 billion acquisition of Ra Pharmaceuticals, its $1.2 billion sale of Kremers Urban Pharmaceuticals to Lannett, and its acquisition of midazolam nasal spray from Proximagen.

    • Eisai in the reorganization of its North American affiliates.
    • Boehringer-Ingelheim in the reorganization of its North American operations.
    • Michel Baulé S.A. in its joint venture with Bayer Material Science AG in the field of hot and cold cast elastomers.
    • HealthPoint Capital Partners in an investment in Scient’X S.A., a French medical device company.
    • AstraZeneca in its equity investments in Abgenix and CancerVax.
    • Bacardi Limited in its acquisition of the St-Germain liqueuer brand; in its investment in and subsequent acquisition of Patrón Spirits International A.G; in its joint venture with Anheuser-Busch for the Bacardi Silver product; in its bid for the drinks assets of Seagram; in its acquisition of the Dewars, Bombay, and Bombay Sapphire brands from Diageo; and in its acquisition of the Martini & Rossi companies.
    • Aegis Research Corporation, a privately held government contractor providing services to the U.S. defense and intelligence communities, in its sale to ManTech International.
    • Decision Systems Technologies, a privately held defense contractor, in its sale to STG, Inc.
    • Dunlop Slazenger Group in its sale of the Maxfli golf brand and related assets to Taylor Made Golf Company and its license to a U.S.-based private equity group of the “Slazenger” golf brand for North America.

    Areas of Expertise

  • Credentials
    Education
    • Harvard Law School, J.D., 1983
        • cum laude
    • Corpus Christi College, University of Oxford, M.A., 1981
        • First Class Honours
    • Princeton University, A.B., 1977
        • Phi Beta Kappa
    Bar Admissions
    • District of Columbia
    Government Experience
    • U.S. House of Representatives
    Judicial Clerkship
    • Hon. Harrison L. Winter, U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit, 1983 - 1984
    Pro Bono
    • Representation of District of Columbia prisoners in parole hearings before the United States Parole Commission.
    • Legal counsel to the Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation of the District of Columbia (Washington National Cathedral, National Cathedral School for Girls, St. Albans School for Boys, and Beauvoir, the National Cathedral Elementary School).
    Previous Experience
    • U.S. House of Representatives, Congressman James P. Johnson, Legislative Assistant (1977-1978)

    Areas of Expertise

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