Esther H. Phu
Esther H. Phu works closely with life sciences and technology companies to structure and negotiate technology transactions, including in-licensing, out-licensing, acquisition, and externalization of intellectual property and products, strategic partnerships, and other complex collaborations. She advises clients on the equity components that are part of a larger collaboration and separately, on private financing and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions where technology is a critical component. Esther also drafts and negotiates day-to-day contractual arrangements, such as master service agreements, clinical trial agreements, and supply and distribution agreements.
Prior to law school, Esther worked closely with attorneys and clients as a legal secretary at an intellectual property law firm.
- Affini-T Therapeutics Inc. in its agreement with Metagenomi Inc. enabling Affini-T’s next generation ex vivo T cell receptor cell therapies for solid tumor patients using Metagenomi’s novel proprietary gene editing systems
- American Regent in its acquisition of HBT Labs, Inc., a pharmaceutical company that has a pipeline of generic and 505(b)(2) pharmaceutical products that target various treatment indications including cancer and central nervous system disorders
- Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD) in the sale of its spleen tyrosine kinase inhibitor portfolio to Kronos Bio, Inc. (NASDAQ: KRON), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on cancer therapeutics
- Hansoh Pharmaceutical Group (HKG: 3692) in a strategic collaboration, exclusive license, and supply agreement with EQRx for the development and commercialization by EQRx of Hansoh’s almonertinib in the United States, Europe, and Japan
- International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) in collaboration with Merck KGaA and Serum Institute of India to develop SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing monoclonal antibodies (developed by IAVI and Scripps Research)
- Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC) in its investments in Sierra Private Investments L.P., the controlling shareholder of Mavenir plc and Ozon Holdings plc (MCX: OZON)
- OliX Pharmaceuticals (KOSDAQ: 226950) in an exclusive license and supply agreement with AM Chemicals, LLC for GalNAc conjugate technology and materials for OliX’s asymmetric small interfering RNA (asiRNA) for liver targeting
- Oracle Corporation (NYSE: ORCL) in the following acquisitions:
- Iridize, an enterprise platform for personalized and contextual user onboarding and training for cloud applications
- Talari Networks, a leading provider of Software-Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) technology offering centralized control and improved application performance
- Vocado, a company that provides a leading student-centric, cloud-based financial aid solution for higher education institutions
- Zenedge, a company that helps secure critical IT systems deployed via cloud, on-premise, or hybrid hosting environments
- Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (NYSE: TAK) in the following transactions:
- Sale of two clinical-stage compounds for cancer treatment to Calithera Biosciences Inc .
- strategic research and license collaboration valued up to $400 million with Evozyne, Inc. to research and develop proteins that could be incorporated into next-generation gene therapies for up to four rare disease targets, as well as Evozyne receiving double-digit million dollars in upfront and research funding payments
- cross-border, multi-asset externalization transaction with Oak Hill Bio under which Takeda will receive an upfront payment, an ownership stake in Oak Hill Bio and potential milestones and royalty payments in exchange for six acquired and licensed programs
- license and collaboration arrangement with Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ: NVAX) for production and commercialization of Novavax’s COVID-19 vaccine candidate in Japan
- University of California, Los Angeles School of Law, 2017, J.D., Business Law Specialization
- University of California, Irvine, 2013, B.A.
- California
US Rising Star, Financial & Corporate, LMG Life Sciences Awards Americas (2024)
