Kate Hillier

Dr. Kate Hillier's practice focuses on the representation of public and private life sciences companies discovering, developing and marketing biopharmaceutical, vaccine, medical device, diagnostic and digital health products.

Kate counsels clients in relation to transactions involving complex intellectual property, business, operational and legal issues, with the aim of maximizing the value of her clients' products and technology. She works closely with her clients in connection with their overall licensing and partnering strategy, and structuring and negotiating critical transactions. In addition, she counsels clients on matters involving supply, distribution, clinical trials, research collaborations and vendor services.
Prior to qualifying as an attorney, Kate worked as a qualified anesthesiologist in Australia and the UK, completing her residency in anesthesiology and intensive care and working as a consultant anesthesiologist in the UK, where she was a member of the hospital's ethics committee. She draws heavily on her academic and clinical experience in medicine and anesthesia in developing a deeper understanding of her clients' technology, and in advising them in the context of complex transactions in the life sciences field.
Kate's representative transactions include the representation of:

• Scripps Research, in its 2022 global collaboration with AbbVie to develop and commercialize novel antiviral therapeutics for treatment of COVID-19.
• Vir Biotechnology, in the expansion of its 2020 collaboration with GSK to include multiple respiratory viral diseases, including Vir’s influenza program, as well as additional antibody and expanded functional genomics programs, with an upfront payment of $225 million and $120 million in additional equity, plus option and milestone payments and profit sharing on all programs. 
• Vir Biotechnology, in a multi-program profit-sharing Covid collaboration with GSK to develop multiple therapeutic approaches to COVID-19, including antibody, vaccine and functional genomics programs.
• Sana Biotechnology, in its 2021 agreement with Beam Therapeutics for commercial rights to Beam’s CRISPR Cas-12b gene editing system in connection with multiple Sana development programs. 
• Merus, N.V. in its collaboration and exclusive license agreement with Eli Lilly to develop up to three CD3-engaging T-cell re-directing bispecific antibody therapies, including a $60 million in aggregate upfront cash and equity investment, and up to $1.2 billion in milestone payments, plus royalties.
• 23andMe in its strategic collaboration with GSK for the research and development of novel targets leveraging 23andMe’s novel database, and equity investment, as well as an ongoing advisory role with respect to multiple amendments to the collaboration to address different programs under development.
• ArsenalBio, in its multi-year discovery collaboration with Bristol Myers Squibb to advance next-generation T cell therapies for the treatment of solid tumors, for a $70 million upfront payment, and substantial additional development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments, plus royalties.
• CStone Pharmaceuticals, in its $200 million investment by a Pfizer affiliate and subsequent strategic collaboration between CStone and Pfizer Investment to develop and commercialize CStone’s sugemalimab in mainland China, for up to $280 million in milestone payments, plus royalties, in addition to a collaboration on other late stage assets in China.
• Bicycle Therapeutics, in its strategic collaboration agreement with Genentech to discover, develop and commercialize novel Bicycle®-based immuno-oncology therapies, for up to $1.7 billion in upfront and milestone payments, plus royalties.
• Harpoon Therapeutics, in a licensing and option collaboration with AbbVie to advance Harpoon’s BCMA-targeting trispecific activating construct, totaling up to $510 million in upfront, option and milestone payments, plus royalties on product sales.
• Harpoon Therapeutics, in a major expansion of its existing discovery collaboration with AbbVie to include up to six additional targets, for up to $300 million per target in upfront and milestone payments, plus royalties.
• Adaptive Biotechnologies, in its worldwide collaboration and license transaction with Genentech to develop and commercialize novel neoantigen directed T-cell therapies in a range of cancers, including transformational personalized therapies directed to individual patients and cancers, for a $300 million upfront payment, and up to $2 billion in potential milestone payments, plus royalties.
• Ionis Pharmaceuticals, in its strategic collaboration with Biogen to develop novel antisense drug candidates in neurological diseases directed to targets selected by Biogen, including a $375 million upfront cash payment and purchase of $625 million in Ionis stock, as well as milestones and royalty payments on product sales.
• The Scripps Research Institute (formerly CALIBR), in two separate collaborations with AbbVie, the first to develop T-cell therapies for cancer using Calibr’s proprietary modular "switchable" CAR-T cell, and the second in a broad collaboration to develop novel therapeutics for a broad range of diseases in oncology, immunology, neurology and fibrosis, each including upfront, milestones and royalty payments.
• Allogene Therapeutics and its investors (including TPG Capital) in the carve out from Pfizer of its Allogeneic T-Cell therapy business, including an equity raise of $300 million. 
• Juno Therapeutics, in its 2015 collaboration with Celgene for the development and commercialization of immunotherapies, including licensing and co-commercialization rights in a range of programs, for combined upfront payment of $1 billion in cash and purchase of Juno stock. [transaction at prior firm] 
  Prior to joining Cooley, Kate was an associate at Latham & Watkins LLP in that firm's London and Menlo Park offices.