Joe Sandys

Cooley advised Philochem AG, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Philogen Group (Milan Stock Exchange: PHIL), on its definitive license agreement with RayzeBio, a wholly owned subsidiary of Bristol Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY), granting RayzeBio exclusive worldwide rights to develop, manufacture and commercialize OncoACP3, a clinical-stage therapeutic and diagnostic agent targeting prostate cancer.

Cooley advised BioNTech SE, a global biotechnology company pioneering next-generation immunotherapies, on its global co-development and co-commercialization collaboration agreement with Bristol Myers Squibb for BioNTech’s antibody candidate BNT327. The transaction includes a $1.5 billion upfront payment and $2 billion total in noncontingent anniversary payments through 2028.

Cooley advised AviadoBio, a company focused on gene therapy for neurodegenerative disorders, on its exclusive option and license agreement with Astellas Pharma for AVB-101, an investigational, adeno-associated virus (AAV)-based gene therapy in Phase 1/2 development for patients with frontotemporal dementia with progranulin mutations (FTD-GRN).

The Chapter 11 plan of PhaseBio Pharmaceuticals, a long-standing Cooley life sciences client, has gone effective following the court’s confirmation of the Chapter 11 plan on June 26, 2024. The plan provides for a global settlement with the official committee of unsecured creditors and a settlement with PhaseBio’s former co-development partner. The Chapter 11 bankruptcy case in the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware was handled by a multioffice, cross-disciplinary Cooley team.

Cooley advised Autolus – a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing next-generation programmed T-cell therapies – on its strategic collaboration with BioNTech, an immunotherapy company pioneering novel therapies for cancer and other serious diseases, to advance both companies’ autologous CAR-T programs toward commercialization, as well as a $350 million underwritten offering.