Law Firm Investments Pay Off in $2.1B Kythera Deal
Partner earnings are still making their way into client coffers through law firm investment funds—and firms are reaping both returns and deal work from their investment targets.
June 22, 2015 at 06:15 PM
3 minute read
It's been nearly six years since The Am Law Daily last checked on the state of law firm venture capitalism—the phenomenon, centered mainly in Silicon Valley, of partners investing their own money into their startup clients. When our affiliate The Recorder chronicled the investment ups and downs of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati back in 2009, some younger partners there seemed to be questioning the practice—or at least lamenting their meager returns in the wake of the dot-com bust and the financial crisis.
But partner earnings are still making their way into client coffers—and firms are reaping both returns and deal work from their investment targets.
The latest example came last week, with the announcement of Botox maker Allergan plc's $2.1 billion acquisition of Kythera Biopharmaceuticals Inc., which makes a drug for treating double chins. Not only have at least three law firms invested in Kythera over the years, but one of them—Latham & Watkins—advised the company on the Allergan deal. The lead Latham partner involved, Silicon Valley life sciences heavyweight Alan Mendelson, has also invested in Kythera independently through a family trust.
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