Stephenson Harwood LLP has advised Lansen Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited (Lansen) on the acquisition of the rights to sell Sicorten Plus, a cream used to treat inflammatory skin diseases, in China from Novartis AG (Novartis), a Swiss multinational pharmaceutical company based in Basel, Switzerland. Lansen acquired the product for an initial USD8 million on 28 March 2014.

Lansen is a specialty pharmaceutical group principally engaged in the development, production and sale of specialty prescription western pharmaceuticals for the treatment of rheumatic diseases in China. Lansen is listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Sicorten Plus is a cream which is used primarily to treat certain corticosteroid-responsive inflammatory skin diseases e.g. psoriasis. An upfront purchase price of USD8 million was paid for the rights to the product in China, and a series of additional milestone payments may be made by Lansen to Novartis, dependent on future sales figures.

Stephenson Harwood advised on all aspects of the transaction, from planning to completion and the announcement of the deal to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Ben Mercer, corporate partner, who led the transaction, commented 'we are delighted to have advised Lansen on this important acquisition within the Chinese pharmaceutical market. The deal involved some detailed legal work, spanning a number of jurisdictions including Switzerland and China."

The Stephenson Harwood team was led by Ben Mercer and drew expertise from the corporate finance, commercial and outsourcing, and intellectual property teams. Ben was supported by partners Hilda Chiu, Dan Holland, and Alexandra Pygall, and assisted by associates Judith Elgood, Fiona Cheng, Simon Bollans, Lou Oliver and Mark Kramer.

Stephenson Harwood has experience advising a wide range of healthcare clients, including biotechnology, pharmaceutical and general healthcare companies, start-ups, medical device companies and those who finance and invest in the industry. Having advised on some of the most significant life sciences transactions including the USD3.8 billion sale of Piramal Enterprises' domestic formulations division to US pharmaceuticals giant Abbott, Stephenson Harwood has a full service team providing corporate, commercial, data protection, employment, tax, competition and both litigation/advisory and transactional intellectual property advice (including licensing) for the healthcare industry.