Covington Advises AstraZeneca on Acquisition of Takeda’s Respiratory Business

Covington Advises AstraZeneca on Acquisition of Takeda’s Respiratory Business

December 17, 2015

LONDON, 17 December, 2015 — Covington advised AstraZeneca on its acquisition of Takeda’s respiratory business. Under the terms of the agreement, AstraZeneca will make a payment of $575 million, and approximately 200 staff will transfer to AstraZeneca upon completion.

The deal will include the expansion of rights to roflumilast (marketed as Daliresp in the United States and Daxas in other countries), the only approved oral PDE4 inhibitor for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). AstraZeneca has marketed Daliresp in the U.S. since the acquisition of the rights from Actavis in the first quarter of 2015. Full acquisition of the global rights will support AstraZeneca’s respiratory franchise and complement the company’s portfolio of treatments for severe COPD.

Working together with AstraZeneca’s in-house legal team, the Covington team was led by partners Gregor Frizzell and Mike Riella. The team was advised by lawyers from the firm’s London and Washington offices, including partners Daniel Pavin, Miranda Cole, Christopher Walter and Robin Blaney, of counsel Guy Dingley and Morag Peberdy, and associates Kate Badr, Ben Land-Maycock, Hannah Edmonds, Bethany Lee, Nick Kereiakes and Ramy Ramadan.