Willkie Farr and Paul Weiss lead on $2.6bn Japanese pharma buyout
Willkie Farr & Gallagher and Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison have taken lead roles on the $2.6bn (£1.6bn) acquisition of US drugmaker Sepracor by Japan's Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma (DSP). The all-cash purchase price represents a premium of nearly $5 (£3) per share above Sepracor's closing price on 1 September. Sepracor's board has unanimously approved the deal, under which the company will continue operating as a wholly-owned subsidiary of DSP.
September 04, 2009 at 06:04 AM
2 minute read
Willkie Farr & Gallagher and Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison have taken lead roles on the $2.6bn (£1.6bn) acquisition of US drugmaker Sepracor by Japan's Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma (DSP).
The all-cash purchase price represents a premium of nearly $5 (£3) per share above Sepracor's closing price on 1 September. Sepracor's board has unanimously approved the deal, under which the company will continue operating as a wholly-owned subsidiary of DSP.
"[Sepracor's] board was pleased with this offer," said Willkie Farr partner Bill Grant, who advised Sepracor on the deal alongside partners Adam Turteltaub and Russell Leaf. DSP will use Sepracor's distribution and marketing arms to introduce its drugs to American consumers, says Grant.
This is the second big pharma purchase the firm has handled this year. In April Willkie Farr advised Stiefel Laboratories on its $3.6bn (£2.2bn) acquisition by GlaxoSmithKline.
Paul Weiss partners Ariel Deckelbaum, Jeffrey Marell, Toby Myerson and Kaye Yoshino represented DSP. Talks between the two companies began last May, Myerson said. The next step is regulatory approval from the Federal Trade Commission, which DSP expects is forthcoming.
Sepracor, which makes the popular sleep aid Lunesta, has strong marketing and distribution arms that will help DSP gain a foothold in the US pharmaceuticals market.
Japanese pharmaceutical companies have been aggressively moving into the US market, driven by the strong yen and stagnant local drug market. In April 2008 Takeda Pharmaceutical acquired another Massachusetts-based firm, Millennium Pharmaceuticals, for $8.8bn (£5.4bn). Last September Shionogi purchased Sciele Pharma of Georgia for $1.4bn (£860m).
In other pharma-merger news, LEO Pharma has acquired Peplin for $287.5m (£176m) in cash. LEO, which is based in Denmark, was advised by Cooley Godward Kronish. Peplin is an Australian firm whose transactional work was handled by Fenwick & West.
This article first appeared on The Am Law Daily blog on americanlawyer.com.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View All
Singapore Leaders Stress the Importance of the Rule of Law Amid Geopolitical Tensions
Can Law Firms Avoid Landing on the 'Enemy' List During the Trump Administration?
5 minute read
Letter From Asia: Will Big Law Ever Bother to Understand Asia Again?
Trending Stories
- 1Morgan Lewis Shutters Shenzhen Office Less Than Two Years After Launch
- 2Litigating the Written Word: Parol Evidence Rule and the Gist of the Action Doctrine in Fraud Claims
- 3Why Wait? Arbitrate! The Value of Consenting to Arbitrate Your SUM Cases at NAM
- 4The Legal Status of Presidential Diaries Must Be Clarified
- 5Litigators of the Week: Shortly After Name Partner Kathleen Sullivan’s Retirement, Quinn Emanuel Scores Appellate Win for Vimeo
Who Got The Work
J. Brugh Lower of Gibbons has entered an appearance for industrial equipment supplier Devco Corporation in a pending trademark infringement lawsuit. The suit, accusing the defendant of selling knock-off Graco products, was filed Dec. 18 in New Jersey District Court by Rivkin Radler on behalf of Graco Inc. and Graco Minnesota. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Zahid N. Quraishi, is 3:24-cv-11294, Graco Inc. et al v. Devco Corporation.
Who Got The Work
Rebecca Maller-Stein and Kent A. Yalowitz of Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer have entered their appearances for Hanaco Venture Capital and its executives, Lior Prosor and David Frankel, in a pending securities lawsuit. The action, filed on Dec. 24 in New York Southern District Court by Zell, Aron & Co. on behalf of Goldeneye Advisors, accuses the defendants of negligently and fraudulently managing the plaintiff's $1 million investment. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick, is 1:24-cv-09918, Goldeneye Advisors, LLC v. Hanaco Venture Capital, Ltd. et al.
Who Got The Work
Attorneys from A&O Shearman has stepped in as defense counsel for Toronto-Dominion Bank and other defendants in a pending securities class action. The suit, filed Dec. 11 in New York Southern District Court by Bleichmar Fonti & Auld, accuses the defendants of concealing the bank's 'pervasive' deficiencies in regards to its compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act and the quality of its anti-money laundering controls. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian, is 1:24-cv-09445, Gonzalez v. The Toronto-Dominion Bank et al.
Who Got The Work
Crown Castle International, a Pennsylvania company providing shared communications infrastructure, has turned to Luke D. Wolf of Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani to fend off a pending breach-of-contract lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 25 in Michigan Eastern District Court by Hooper Hathaway PC on behalf of The Town Residences LLC, accuses Crown Castle of failing to transfer approximately $30,000 in utility payments from T-Mobile in breach of a roof-top lease and assignment agreement. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Susan K. Declercq, is 2:24-cv-13131, The Town Residences LLC v. T-Mobile US, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Wilfred P. Coronato and Daniel M. Schwartz of McCarter & English have stepped in as defense counsel to Electrolux Home Products Inc. in a pending product liability lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 26 in New York Eastern District Court by Poulos Lopiccolo PC and Nagel Rice LLP on behalf of David Stern, alleges that the defendant's refrigerators’ drawers and shelving repeatedly break and fall apart within months after purchase. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Joan M. Azrack, is 2:24-cv-08204, Stern v. Electrolux Home Products, Inc.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250
