Service
Pharma & MedTech transactions.
The firm drafts and negotiates the commercial agreements behind life-sciences deals: in- and out-licensing, co-development and option arrangements, manufacturing-supply and quality agreements, and distribution contracts. The work is grounded in Swiss contract law under the OR. This is contractual transaction work, not corporate or M&A, share deals or equity.
Who this is for
- Basel and Swiss biotechs licensing assets in- or out-bound with larger pharma partners.
- Swiss-affiliate pharma and MedTech teams managing supplier, manufacturing and distribution chains.
- Companies needing matched commercial and quality documentation for a single product programme.
What's included
- Licence agreements: in- and out-licensing of patents, know-how and regulatory data, with field, territory, exclusivity, milestone and royalty terms, drafted within the freedom-of-contract limits of Swiss law (Art. 19 OR).
- Co-development and option deals: collaboration, joint-steering and option-to-licence structures that allocate development work, costs and resulting intellectual-property rights between the parties.
- Term sheets and heads of terms: the commercial skeleton of a deal, with care taken that the binding and non-binding parts are clearly marked, since a Swiss contract binds on the parties' true common intent rather than the label used (Art. 18 OR).
- Manufacturing-supply and quality agreements: supply terms drafted as a matched pair with the quality/GMP responsibilities, so the commercial and regulatory obligations align rather than conflict.
- Distribution arrangements: distribution and reseller contracts for finished products, including the responsibility split for regulatory, vigilance and recall duties along the chain.
- Liability and remedies: warranty, indemnity, liability-cap and termination provisions calibrated to the default consequences of non-performance under Swiss law (Art. 97 OR).
How it works
- Scoping. The firm maps the deal structure, the document list and the governing-law preference for the transaction.
- Term sheet. The firm captures the commercial heads of terms and marks clearly which parts are intended to bind.
- Drafting. The firm prepares the agreements as a scope-based fixed-fee deliverable against the agreed document list.
- Negotiation. The firm runs the mark-up exchange with the counterparty on an hourly basis through to signature.
- Close-out. The firm assembles the execution versions, the signature pack and the schedule of ongoing obligations.
Indicative pricing
Phased fixed fee; collar optional
Quoted per transaction
A phased fixed fee across diligence, drafting and closing, with an optional collared cap; active negotiation at CHF 950 to 1,100 / hour.
Indicative starting prices, net and exclusive of Swiss MWST (VAT) where applicable; final fee per written engagement letter.
Frequently asked questions
- Does the firm act on M&A or share deals?
- No. This service covers commercial and contractual transactions only: licence, co-development, manufacturing-supply, quality and distribution agreements. It does not extend to corporate or M&A work, share deals or equity transactions. Where a deal has a corporate-acquisition element, the firm scopes the contractual workstreams it can lead and flags the corporate strand for separate counsel.
- Which law governs a licence or supply agreement drafted by the firm?
- Cross-border life-sciences agreements are most often drafted under Swiss law, where the parties are free to fix the content of their contract within the limits of the law (Art. 19 OR) and, as a rule, no special form is required for validity (Art. 11 OR). The firm can also work to a foreign governing law where the counterparty requires it, coordinating with local counsel on points that turn on that law.
- How is the work priced: fixed fee or hourly?
- Pricing is quoted per transaction. Drafting and term-sheet work is a scope-based fixed fee, set once the deal structure and document list are known. Active negotiation is billed hourly, at CHF 650 to 950. Under Swiss professional rules a pure contingency or success fee is not available; fees are fixed or time-based per the engagement letter.
- Can the firm handle the quality agreement alongside the supply contract?
- Yes. Manufacturing-supply and quality agreements are drafted as a matched pair so that the commercial terms and the GMP responsibilities align rather than contradict each other. The firm prepares the legal documentation and the allocation of regulatory responsibilities between the parties; it does not perform the technical quality audit itself.