Darryl H. Steensma

Counsel

San Diego
darryl.steensma@lw.com
+1.858.523.5400

PRACTICES

  • Emerging Companies & Growth
  • Life Sciences Licensing
  • Mergers & Acquisitions
  • Technology Transactions

INDUSTRIES

  • Healthcare & Life Sciences
  • Technology

BAR QUALIFICATIONS

  • California
  • US Patent and Trademark Office

EDUCATION

  • JD, Fordham University School of Law, 2002
  • PhD in Organic Chemistry, Wayne State University, 1992
  • BS in Chemistry, Calvin College, 1988

PROFILE

Darryl Steensma advises life sciences companies, investors, and financial institutions on a wide range of transactional matters.

Drawing on deep technical and subject matter experience as a biopharmaceutical scientist, Darryl advises clients on their most critical partnerships and corporate transactions. He regularly counsels on matters regarding:

  • Licensing and corporate partnering
  • Co-promotion, co-marketing, and co-commercialization agreements
  • University license agreements
  • Research and collaboration agreements
  • Asset purchases and mergers
  • Manufacturing, distribution, and quality agreements
  • Clinical trial collaboration and supply agreements
  • Royalty stream purchases and sales

Darryl is registered to practice before the US Patent and Trademark Office and has litigated numerous patent cases. His experience prosecuting and litigating patents on behalf of multinational and start-up companies, including substantial experience in Hatch-Waxman litigation for both generic and branded pharmaceutical companies, informs his counsel on transactional and investment matters.

Prior to practicing law, Darryl held postdoctoral research positions at The Scripps Research Institute and at Georgetown University Medical Center. He is a named co-inventor on four US patents and is a co-author of over 10 peer-reviewed research publications.

EXPERIENCE

Darryl’s recent transactions include advising:

  • Erasca in its exclusive worldwide license agreement with Novartis for naporafenib, a Phase 2 pivotal-ready pan-RAF inhibitor with a potential first-in-class and best-in-class profile in NRAS mutant (NRASm) melanoma and other RAS/MAPK pathway-driven tumors
  • Zentalis Pharmaceuticals in its collaboration agreement with Pfizer to advance the clinical development of ZN-c3, a selective Wee1 inhibitor designed to induce synthetic lethality in cancer cells
  • Amgen in its US$2.7 billion strategic collaboration with BeiGene for the commercialization and development in China of Amgen’s XGEVA® (denosumab), KYPROLIS® (carfilzomib), and BLINCYTO® (blinatumomab), and the joint global development of 20 oncology assets in Amgen’s pipeline
  • Amgen in its US$2.5 billion acquisition of TeneoBio, Inc., a privately held, clinical stage biotechnology company, including its proprietary bispecific and multispecific antibody technologies
  • Nestle in its US$5.75 billion acquisition of the core brands of The Bountiful Company, including Nature’s Bounty®, Solgar®, Osteo Bi-Flex®, Puritan’s Pride®, Ester-C®, and Sundown®
  • GlaxoSmithKline in its US$2.2 billion strategic global collaboration agreement with Alector for the development and commercialization of two clinical-stage, potential first-in-class monoclonal antibodies (AL001 and AL101) designed to elevate progranulin (PGRN) levels
  • Swedish Orphan Biovitrum in its US$1.2 billion collaboration agreement with Apellis Pharmaceuticals for the global co-development and ex-US commercialization of systemic pegcetacoplan in rare diseases
  • Zogenix in its distribution agreement with Nippon Shinyaku Company for exclusive rights to distribute Fintepla (fenfluramine) in Japan
  • Zogenix in its US$400 million acquisition of Modis Therapeutics, a private, early stage pharmaceutical company developing a deoxynucleoside combination therapy for treatment of thymidine kinase 2 deficiency (TK2d), an inherited mitochondrial disorder