In The Hague, Marc van Wijngaarden and Michiel Wurfbain jointly lead the team at Bird & Bird, which maintains its strong reputation for advising clients on the regulatory, data, and privacy aspects of digital health mandates. The group advises biotech and pharma companies, and funds on their investments and listings. Wurfbain is noted for his vast expertise in advising on capital markets transactions and cross-border M&A, and van Wijngaarden is an IP specialist who acts for pharma, biotech, and medical device clients. Tjibbe Douma is adept at representing clients in EPO opposition proceedings and advising on UPC strategy, while Hester Borgers is known for her expertise in regulatory disputes and multi-jurisdictional patent litigation.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

  • ‘The team works hand in hand, and the brilliant communication skills of the team members allow them to communicate well with each other to find the best solutions, communicate well with collaboration partners to coordinate efforts, and communicate well with the client. They have a great understanding for the substance and the legal aspects of the cases.’

  • ‘Tjibbe Douma is a great leader. He listens to his team and leads by example, not hierarchy. He always has the complete picture of the case, including in the context of international litigation. Furthermore, he is very convincing and very sharp in court.’

  • ‘Hester Borgers has phenomenal communication skills and a great overview of the cases she works.’

Key clients

  • B Braun Melsungen
  • Fengh Medical
  • Oculentis
  • ConvaTec
  • Polpharma
  • Sanofi
  • Ablynx
  • Bicycle Therapeutics
  • Edwards Lifesciences
  • Chinook
  • Lonza Group
  • Veloxis Pharmaceuticals
  • Preceyes
  • Keygene
  • Ferring Pharmaceuticals
  • Scoutcam
  • Pet Service Holding
  • Neuraxpharm

Work highlights

  • Represented Edwards Lifesciences in a multi-jurisdiction multi-patent dispute against Meril Life Sciences and its national distributor in light of Meril's global launch at risk of their prosthetic heart valve Myval, which is, according to Edwards, a copy of their own prosthetic valve, the SAPIEN 3.
  • Rerpesented Neuraxpharm in a high profile, international patent litigation in the Netherlands against Biogen, which also involves regulatory aspects and concerns the introduction of Neuraxpharm DMF, which is prescribed as a treatment option for adults with relapsing multiple sclerosis and competes with Biogen’s blockbuster drug Tecfidera.
  • Assisted Swiss stock exchange listed Lonza Group AG with its acquisition of Synaffix B.V., a biotechnology company focused on commercialising its clinical-stage technology platform for the development of ADCs.

Lawyers

Leading associates
Leading associates with regular involvement in their team's key work, and recognition from peers or clients as being ones to watch.
Leading partners
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.

Practice head

The lawyer(s) leading their teams.

Marc van Wijngaarden, Michiel Wurfbain

Other key lawyers

Wouter Pors, Tjibbe Douma, Hester Borgers