Kirkland Represents Eli Lilly on Acquisition of Akouos

Kirkland & Ellis advised Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) on its acquisition of Akouos, a precision genetic medicine company that is developing a portfolio of first-in-class adeno-associated viral gene therapies for the treatment of inner ear conditions, including sensorineural hearing loss, for a purchase price of $12.50 per share in cash (approximately $487 million), plus a contingent value right that entitles the holder to receive up to an additional $3.00 in cash upon the achievement of future milestones, for an aggregate purchase price of up to approximately $610 million. The acquisition will accelerate gene therapies that aim to restore, improve, and preserve hearing for patients living with disabling hearing loss worldwide. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2022. 

Read the transaction press release 

The Kirkland team was led by corporate partners Keri Schick Norton and Sarkis Jebejian and associates Steven Choi, Jorge Toledo and Nicolas Friedel, capital markets partners Sophia Hudson and Sharon Freiman and associates Asher Qazi, Devansi Reshamwala and Boran Ding, and technology & IP transactions partners Shellie Freedman and Amber Harezlak and associate RJ McLaughlin.