2024 was a prolific year for activists, with 243 campaigns launched globally – the highest number since 2018. US activity was up modestly, and a busy year in Asia offset a quieter year in Europe. With the 2025 proxy season in...more
With every new year comes reflection and resolutions. But as we go to press well into January, it is worth a reminder that studies show nearly 90% of New Year’s resolutions will have already failed by the end of the month....more
2023’s much-discussed downturn in mergers & acquisitions – with global M&A volume and value down 6% and 17%, respectively, from 2022 – was largely driven by the slowdown in the tech sector, with global tech M&A volumes down...more
As we look ahead to the 2024 proxy season (and beyond), let’s review the key 2023 trends and developments from activism playbooks, with a sharp focus on the ever-changing landscape in the technology and healthcare sectors....more
In a subdued year for global M&A, deal-making in the life sciences industry came in waves, with a busy fourth quarter generating cautious optimism heading into 2024. While the year saw an overall decline in M&A activity (down...more
In all economic cycles, engaged public company boards and management teams do their homework on the wide range of potential strategic opportunities. In the current market environment, however, we have observed that an...more
Tech M&A in 2022 was a tale of two halves. The year started off with a bang, with mega-deals such as Microsoft’s pending $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Elon Musk’s $44 billion acquisition of Twitter and...more
Although 2022 saw a general decline in M&A activity in the life sciences industry compared to 2021’s frenetic pace (when deal volume was up 52% from 2020), life sciences deal flow in 2022 on balance remained strong despite...more
General trends in tech M&A Hello, (virtual) world once again! Despite everyone’s efforts in 2021, including the rollout of vaccines and varying rounds of lockdowns and work-from-home mandates, a true “return to normal” for...more
General trends in life sciences M&A Although the COVID-19 pandemic that defined 2020 continued to shape much of the life sciences industry in 2021, the way that it did was markedly different. While 2020’s M&A landscape was...more
It is a reasonable extrapolation – and we are nothing at Cooley if not wildly reasonable – that, since the beginning of time, more operating companies are considering going public through a merger with a SPAC (Special Purpose...more
A Tale of Two Years -
While we continue to absorb and understand the worldwide pandemic shockwaves of 2020, trying to encapsulate the vicissitudes of the past year in an annual recap is daunting. Early weeks of the...more
General Trends in Life Sciences M&A -
If 2019 was the year of life sciences mega-deals, 2020 was the year of COVID-19, as the global pandemic permeated every aspect of the dealmaking landscape, with the life sciences...more
In the months following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, a slew of parties filed lawsuits in US courts relating to M&A transactions that were signed prior to March 2020 and that buyers were seeking to terminate as a result...more
It is a reasonable extrapolation – and we are nothing at Cooley if not wildly reasonable – that more operating companies are considering going public through a merger with a SPAC (commonly referred to as a backdoor IPO) since...more
In “La La Land,” Damien Chazelle’s Oscar winning film, the audience thinks it has a formulaic Hollywood love story on its hands: boy and girl meet; boy and girl fall in love; boy and girl break up; and boy and girl get back...more