Debevoise & Plimpton LLP is advising Johnson & Johnson (“J&J”) in a definitive agreement by J&J subsidiary McNEIL-PPC, Inc. to sell the global rights to the K-Y brand, a leader in intimate lubricants, to Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC (“RB”). The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and closing conditions and is expected to close in mid-2014.

K-Y started as a prescription medical device in 1917 and switched to over-the-counter in 1980. The brand’s clinical and professional heritage is unique in the category and is the underpinning to its trusted and professionally endorsed position. It has been the historical innovator in the category and was the brand that built the female intimacy enhancement segment in lubricants.

The Debevoise team is led by partner Kevin A. Rinker and includes partners Peter A. Furci and Jonathan F. Lewis, counsel Brandon C. Gruner, and associates David P. Iozzi, Jennifer L. Chu, Jonathan L. Lubin, Nicole C. Ganci, Andrew G. Jamieson and Maxine Sharavsky.