Rama Padmanabhan

Rama focuses on all types of public and private M&A with a proven track record leading cross-border transactions. A trailblazer in life sciences, she represents biotech, pharmaceuticals and medical device companies in high-stakes transactions while also advising tech clients from a range of industries, from artificial intelligence and healthcare IT to semiconductor, software, ecommerce, consumer and retail.

She is sought out by companies, boards and special committees for counsel on a variety of corporate and securities matters. Besides advising clients through the full spectrum of M&A, Rama has guided clients through venture capital financings, securities offerings and other complex transactions, representing an aggregate value of more than $100 billion.

Chambers-ranked for Corporate/M&A, Rama was named Dealmaker of the Year in Healthcare, Pharma & Biotech at The Deal’s 2020 Middle Market Awards and has been recognized by Lawdragon as one of the 500 Leading Dealmakers in America every year since 2021.

Rama’s representative matters include:

Public transactions

• Cidara Therapeutics’ approximately $9.2 billion sale to Merck
• Gracell Biotechnologies’ $1.2 billion sale to AstraZeneca
• Travere Therapeutics’ sale of its bile acid product portfolio to Mirum
• CinCor Pharma’s $1.8 billion sale to AstraZeneca
• Horizon Therapeutics’ $28.3 billion sale to Amgen
• Neogene Therapeutics’ up to $320 million sale to AstraZeneca
• ViaCyte’s $320 million sale to Vertex
• Horizon Therapeutics’ $3.05 billion acquisition of Viela Bio 
• Synthorx’s $2.5 billion sale to Sanofi
• Equillium’s up to $329 million acquisition of Bioniz Therapeutics
• Chimerix’s up to $438 million acquisition of Oncoceutics
• Bionano Genomics’ acquisitions of BioDiscovery and Lineagen
• Travere’s up to $517 million acquisition of Orphan Technologies
• Crown Bioscience’s $400 million sale to JSR Corporation
• Sequenom’s $302 million sale to LabCorp
• Auspex Pharmaceuticals’ $3.5 billion sale to Teva Pharmaceuticals
• Dot Hill Systems’ approximately $700 million sale to Seagate Technology
• Horizon Pharma’s $1.1 billion acquisition of Hyperion Therapeutics
• Volcano Corporation’s $1 billion sale to Royal Philips
• Trius Therapeutics’ $704 million (plus contingent value rights) sale to Cubist Pharmaceuticals
• Ambit Biosciences’ $315 million (plus contingent value rights) sale to Daiichi Sankyo
• Peet’s Coffee & Tea’s $1 billion sale to Joh. A. Benckiser
• Micromet’s $1.16 billion sale to Amgen
• Clinical Data’s $1.2 billion sale to Forest Labs
• Hot Topic’s $600 million sale to Sycamore Partners

Private transactions

• Capstan Therapeutics’ $2.1 billion sale to AbbVie
• An investor syndicate’s $2.25 billion acquisition of HistoSonics
• EsoBiotec’s up to $1 billion sale to AstraZeneca
• Nerio Therapeutics’ $1.3 billion sale to Boehringer Ingelheim
• ProfoundBio’s $1.8 billion sale to Genmab
• Radionetics Oncology’s strategic agreement with Eli Lilly
• Veritone’s acquisition of Broadbean
• Prodege’s acquisition of BitBurst
• Tentarix Biotherapeutics’ three multiyear collaborations with Gilead Sciences
• Paidy’s $2.7 billion sale to PayPal
• Retrophin’s $517 million acquisition of Orphan Technologies
• Qualcomm’s numerous acquisitions
• Prodege’s investment from Great Hill Partners
• Silicon Therapeutics’ $450 million in equity (plus milestones) sale to Roivant Sciences
• Lengo Therapeutics’ up to $465 million sale to Blueprint Medicines
• Biotheranostics’ $230 million sale to Hologic
• Amplyx Pharmaceuticals’ sale to Pfizer
• Syracuse Biopharma’s sale to JW Therapeutics
• JCR Pharmaceuticals’ acquisition of ArmaGen
• Portfolium’s sale to Instructure
• Nikkiso America’s numerous transactions, including the acquisition of Cryogenic Industries
• Protein Sciences’ up to $750 million sale to Sanofi
• Calimmune’s $91 million (plus milestones) sale to CSL Behring

SPAC and reverse merger transactions

• Silverback Therapeutics’ reverse merger with ARS Pharmaceuticals
• Turnstone Biologics’ reverse merger with XOMA Royalty Corp
• Inmagene Biopharmaceuticals’ reverse merger with Ikena Oncology
• Tvardi Therapeutics’ reverse merger with Cara Therapeutics
• TriSalus Life Sciences’ deSPAC with MedTech Acquisition
• NKGen Biotech’s deSPAC with Graf Acquisition Corp. IV
• FinAccel’s deSPAC with VPC Impact Acquisition Holdings II
• Quanergy’s deSPAC with CITIC Capital Acquisition Corp.
• Nuvation Bio’s deSPAC with Panacea Acquisition Corp.
• Immunovant’s deSPAC with Health Sciences Acquisition Corp.
• Palisade Bio’s reverse merger with Seneca Biopharma
• Tocagen’s reverse merger with Forte Biosciences
• Protara Therapeutics’ reverse merger with Proteon
• Vical’s reverse merger with Brickell Biotech
• AmpliPhi Biosciences’ reverse merger with C3J Therapeutics to form Armata Pharmaceuticals
• Arcturus Therapeutics’ reverse merger with Alcobra

Before joining Cooley, Rama was an associate at a US-based international law firm.

Rankings and accolades

• Chambers USA: Corporate/M&A – California: San Diego (2024 – 2025)
• The Legal 500 US: M&A: Large Deals ($1bn+) (2024 – 2025)
• San Diego Business Journal: Women of Influence in Law (2025)
• Lawdragon: 500 Leading Dealmakers in America (2021 – 2025)
• San Diego Business Journal: Top 100 Leaders in Law Awards (2023)
• The Deal: Middle Market Awards – Dealmaker of the Year in Healthcare, Pharma & Biotech (2020)

Rama’s speaking engagements

• “Making the Most of JPM: A Readiness Guide for Life Sciences Companies,” Cooley webinar, December 18, 2025
• “Breakthrough Bootcamp at Jefferies Global Healthcare Conference in London,” November 18, 2025
• “Fitting Puzzle Pieces: Compensation Issues in Mergers and Acquisitions,” Cooley webinar, November 5, 2025
• “Breakthrough Bootcamp at BIO,” June 17, 2025
• ChinaBio Partnering Forum, April 23, 2025
• “Dual Roads to Liquidity: For Asia-based companies,” Cooley webinar, February 12, 2025
• ChinaBio Partnering Forum, September 11, 2024
• 7th Annual BFC Global Healthcare BD & Investment Conference, January 7, 2024
• “Compensation Issues in Mergers & Acquisitions,” Cooley webinar, September 13, 2023
• “Life Sciences Dealmaking: Recent Trends and the Outlook for 2023,” Cooley Rx Series, February 9, 2023
• “Liquidity Strategies for Life Sciences Companies,” Cooley webinar, November 1, 2022
• “M&A Dealmakers Roundtable – Key Trends + Legal Updates,” Cooley webinar, December 17, 2020
• “Dealmakers Roundtable: SPACs!,” Cooley webinar, September 24, 2020
• “Trends in Life Sciences M&A Dealmaking,” J.P. Morgan, January 14, 2020
• “Monetize Your Assets Using Structured Transactions,” ChinaBio Partnering Forum, May 2019
• “Stories From the Trenches: How to Successfully Execute a Cross-Border M&A Transaction,” ChinaBio Partnering Forum, May 2019
• “Achieving Success with the Build-to Buy Model,” BIO International Convention, June 4, 2018
• “Evaluating the Opportunity for a Reverse Merger,” Cooley U at JLABS, January 23, 2018