New Report Emphasizes Importance of Comprehensive Contracts

An essential 'how to book for business executives in the pharmaceutical, medical devices and biotechnology industries explaining licensing and partnering agreements

(PRWEB) September 19, 2003 ---Licensing and partnering agreements are at the core of the business development process for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, big and small. It is vital that the contract is clearly written and as comprehensive as possible. Lead author of this new report, Paul Ranson (formerly UK Counsel at Merck & Co and at Simmons and Simmons) puts all his practical experience and wisdom in front of the reader in an essential 'how to book for business executives in the pharmaceutical industry but also those in medical devices and biotechnology.

The 77 page report 'The Licensing Agreement in Pharmaceutical Business Development: How To Get Into An Agreement and Out Again is published by PharmaLaw Reports and the Bridgehead Pharmalicensing Group. It also provides insight into US agreements by Sherry Knowles & Madeline Johnston of King & Spalding, Atlanta, USA. The introduction, written by Chris Neild of Bridgehead Technologies, places the report in a business development and commercial context.

The real test of a well-drafted agreement is not how it addresses short-term issues (which are typically on the minds of the parties during negotiation) but how it handles those issues that are more difficult to anticipate and that arise years after execution," Paul Ranson explained. A good agreement will avoid ambiguities and cover as many conceivable eventualities as possible. This limits the possibility of intractable dispute or recourse to the courts to determine what you may or may not have meant to say years later."

Brief contents
1. Introduction
2. Agreements & the Business Development Professional
3. The Licensing Agreement in the Overall Business Development Context
4. Key Terms in a Pharmaceutical Licensing Agreement
5. Competition Law and Pharmaceutical Business Development
6. Pharmaceutical License Agreements: A Current US Perspective
7. Conclusions
8. Templates
9. Author Biographies

For further details on the report, please go to www.pharmalicensing.com/reports

About Paul Ranson
Paul Ranson was until recently Head of Healthcare Law at Simmons & Simmons and has some 20 years experience in the commercial and regulatory issues affecting the pharmaceutical and medical device industries. Prior to his 10 years with Simmons & Simmons, he was previously UK Counsel for both SmithKline & French and Merck, Sharp & Dohme. His contributions to the sector include involvement in trade associations for both the pharmaceutical and medical device industries, membership of an independent ethics committee, six industry reports including most recently the Financial Times report 'Successful Licensing and the Medius report 'Successful Business Development and membership of the editorial board of the Journal of Commercial Biotechnology. He is recommended in the European Counsel report on lawyers in the Life Sciences sector and the Legal 500.

About PharmaLaw
PharmaLaw is a law firm wholly dedicated to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device sectors and their legal needs. It advises clients ranging from start-ups to the largest pharmaceutical companies. Paul Ranson founded PharmaLaw in 2001. Our experience and expertise encompass the requirements of established pharmaceutical and device businesses-such as commercial and regulatory compliance and marketing alliances. We also appreciate the very different priorities of the biotechnology or platform technology company where the principal focus may be research, outsourcing, research alliances and finance. We pride ourselves on our approachability and ability to talk your language. We also know the value of giving clear answers and advice. Our no-nonsense style and flexibility mean that our clients consider that we give value for money. The firm and its members are recommended in both Legal 500 and the European Counsel 3000 guides for their life science expertise.

About the Bridgehead Pharmalicensing Group
The Bridgehead Pharmalicensing Group, the result of a merger between Pharmalicensing Ltd and Bridgehead Technologies Ltd, is a full service business supplying licensing, partnering and consulting services to companies worldwide, ranging from small biotechnology start-ups to leading pharmaceutical and medical companies.
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