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How protected are your drug formulations in your transactions?

Drug formulations are incredibly valuable to pharmaceutical businesses; however, they often get overlooked during transactions.  This can create risk for both the seller and buyer of the assets. For the seller, the worst case is that you have released some of your ‘crown jewels’ to a buyer or you have inadvertently prohibited your retained business from continuing its operations in the ordinary course.  For the buyer, a licence of drug formulations could be too restrictive, either not allowing for future expansion or allowing the seller to continue to take market share using the same formulation. 

An understanding of the value and importance of protecting the formulations during the deal can also be business critical for both parties.  There are a number of considerations to assess before agreeing on how to share or transfer the formulation. For example, should the formulation be assigned or licensed; do the product files and dossiers have the right information to ensure the buyer can continue to produce the product; and are the transaction documents complete and appropriately structured?  All of these issues and more should be considered during the life cycle of your transaction to ensure both parties realise their strategic objectives.

On 25 May, A&O will be hosting a 45 minute webinar to discuss this further, providing practical tips to ensure drug formulations are protected during your transactions.  Registration is essential. Please RSVP here.