Christian Plaza

Christian is a partner in Cooley’s private companies group who works exclusively with life sciences companies and their investors.

For more than 30 years, Christian has served as a strategic counselor to top life sciences and healthcare clients throughout their life cycle. In this role, Christian helps his clients navigate transformative business transactions, with an emphasis on public and private offerings, venture capital transactions, mergers and acquisitions, partnerships and collaborations. In addition, Christian regularly advises the boards of public and private life sciences and healthcare companies as a senior counselor on key strategic and corporate governance matters.

Christian assists clients throughout the US, Europe and Asia. As a result, he has deep experience helping foreign companies access capital and commercial opportunities in the US.

From 2019 through 2025, Christian served as co-chair of Cooley’s global life sciences and healthcare practice. He previously served as partner in charge of Cooley’s Boston office and head of that office’s business practice.

Christian’s recent representative transactions include:

• Artios Therapeutics in multiple private financings
• Atsena Therapeutics in its spin-out from the University of Florida and subsequent private financings
• Autolus Therapeutics in its initial public offering (IPO) and multiple follow-on offerings
• Cardioxyl Pharmaceuticals in its $2 billion sale to Bristol-Myers Squibb
• Cavion in its private financings and subsequent sale to Jazz Pharmaceuticals worth up to $312.5 million
• CiVi Biopharma in multiple private financings
• DioGenix in its sale to Amarantus Bioscience Holdings
• Entasis Therapeutics in its IPO and previous spin-out from AstraZeneca, Series A financing and Series B financing
• Envisia Therapeutics in its sale to Aerie Pharmaceuticals
• Frazier Healthcare Partners in venture investments
• GlycoMimetics in its IPO and subsequent follow-on offerings
• HIG Bioventures in multiple venture investments
• Nextech Invest in multiple venture investments
• PhaseBio in its private financings, IPO and subsequent follow-on offerings
• Prasco in its acquisition of Adderall XR from Teva Pharmaceuticals
• Senseonics in its IPO and subsequent follow-on offerings
• Sucampo in its $200 million acquisition of Vtesse, $278 million acquisition of R-Tech Ueno and $1.2 billion sale to Mallinckrodt
• Scioderm in its $947 million sale to Amicus Therapeutics
• SOTIO in its acquisition of assets from Unum Therapeutics
• Symbiomix Therapeutics in its private financings and subsequent sale to Lupin Pharmaceuticals
• Zielbio in its Series A financing