Sidley won a trio of awards at LMG Life Science‘s 2021 European Awards. Sidley was named “European Competition & Antitrust Law Firm of the Year” and “Benelux Life Sciences Firm of the Year.” The firm also received an award for “Impact Deal of the Year” for Case C-649/18. The awards annually celebrate the success and accomplishments of leading law firms and individuals behind the most innovative and challenging work in the life sciences industry.
LMG commended Sidley for its competitive life sciences work during 2020, praising the firm for having “performed exceptionally” at both local and national levels. It highlighted the firm’s work on Case C-649/18 in which the Sidley team, including partner Kristina Nordlander and senior associate Anne Robert achieved a significant victory representing a mail-order pharmacy in the first case before the European Court of Justice interpreting the substantive free movement provisions of the EU e-Commerce Directive. The EU Commission lauded this victory for the promotion of both e-commerce and e-health.
LMG further praised Sidley for its work before the EU Courts regarding the burden of proof applied by the EMA in its review of marketing authorization applications. Also noted was the firm’s representation of innovative clients against EU governments reimbursing pharmacy-compounded products instead of authorized medicinal products. The Sidley teams on these matters were led by Brussels partner Maarten Meulenbelt.
Spanning three continents, Sidley’s integrated Life Sciences industry team works cohesively to provide pioneering legal advice to the biotechnology, pharmaceutical, and medical device industries. The team’s insider’s perspective of government, commercial in-house experience, as well as former clinicians, is an important feature that it brings to bear in advising clients’ multi-faceted, multinational business concerns across borders, cultures, and complex legal terrain. A number of the lawyers have years of experience serving in senior roles at key regulatory agencies. The team’s substantial government credentials include successfully representing clients before government agencies including the European Commission, the MHRA, EMA, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Department of Justice, and the National Medical Products Administration.