Emelia Morris advises on a wide range of corporate transactions, including private mergers and acquisitions (both domestic and cross-border), public takeovers, IPOs, fundraisings, joint ventures, restructurings and private equity-backed transactions, as well as corporate advisory work. Ms. Morris represents clients across a broad range of sectors, including financial services, real estate, and insurance, but has a particular interest in and focus on healthcare, life sciences and technology.
Ms. Morris also advises on commercial transactions involved in the development, exploitation and commercialization of medicinal products. Ms. Morris has been involved in negotiating a wide range of commercial agreements including licence and collaboration agreements, manufacturing and distribution and supply agreements. Since the declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic Ms. Morris has worked with the vaccine industry to advise on vaccine and antiviral procurement by governments and international organisations including the EU and COVAX.
Ms. Morris is also active in pro bono work at the firm. In 2021 she successfully represented a pro bono client in a building dispute in court and is currently assisting a family with their immigration applications.
Experience
- Advising Essential Pharma on the Acquisition of Renaissance Pharma
- Novartis, on a collaboration and license agreement with BicycleTx Limited to develop, manufacture, and commercialize BicycleTx’s radio-conjugates for two of Novartis’ oncology targets.
- Bristol Myers Squibb, on a strategic license and collaboration agreement with Zenas to develop and commercialize novel bi-functional antibody Obexelimab in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia.
- Pfizer on a renegotiation and expansion of a collaboration with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation to deliver more than 320 million doses of Pfizer’s injectable contraceptive, Sayana® Press, to enable greater access to injectable contraceptives for millions of women in low- and lower-middle income countries.
- Novartis, on an exclusive license agreement in relation to its naporafenib asset, a Phase 2 pivotal-ready pan-RAF inhibitor for treating pathway-driven tumours, to Erasca Inc.
- NASDAQ-listed biopharmaceutical company, on an option agreement to acquire a UK-based biotech seeking to develop a novel treatment for a hereditary degenerative disease and subsequent exercise of such option.
- Polyloop, on its pre-seed investment round with private investors and corporate advisory work.
- Steering committee of term loan lenders, in relation to the restructuring of over $2 billion of debt owed by to Cineworld Group Plc, a publicly listed company on the London Stock Exchange and the world's second-largest cinema chain, through Chapter 11 proceedings in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas.
- West Texas Eye, Cataract Surgical Center of Lubbock, and Lubbock LaserVision Center on the sale of certain assets of West Texas Eye’s ophthalmology practice, and the equity of Cataract Surgical Center of Lubbock and Lubbock LaserVision Center, to American Vision Partners (AVP), an affiliate of private equity firm H.I.G. Capital.
- Omega Healthcare Investors Inc., in a number of transactions concerning its acquisition and lease of UK healthcare facilities and general corporate advisory work.
- Touchlight Genetics on renegotiated license with AskBio and joint venture exit.
- Wheels Up Experience Inc. on its recommended all-cash acquisition by way of a scheme of arrangement of Air Partner plc, a publicly listed company on the London Stock Exchange.
- Touchlight, on various corporate matters, including fundraising from private equity.
- Mark G. Anderson Consultants Inc., on its acquisition of London-based property and construction consultants Robinson Low Francis LLP.
- Better HoldCo Inc., a U.S.-based digital homeownership platform, in its acquisition of the UK-based digital mortgage and insurance broker Trussle.
- AstraZeneca, in agreements with governmental authorities for the distribution of the University of Oxford's COVID-19 vaccine.
- Pfizer, in agreements for the supply to various governmental authorities of Pfizer and BioNTech’s mRNA-based vaccine candidate, BNT162b2, against SARS-CoV-2.
- Steering committee of term loan lenders owed in excess of $2 billion with respect to the issuance of a new $450 million term loan facility to Cineworld Group Plc (Cineworld), a publicly listed company on the London Stock Exchange and the world's second-largest cinema chain.
Perspectives
Credentials
Education
- American Law and Politics, University of Southern California, 2016
- M.A., Law, Queens' College, Cambridge, 2015
Admissions
- England and Wales