Novartis Acquires Sabex

On August 13, 2004, Novartis AG, through Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc. acquired all outstanding securities of Sabex Inc. for US$565 million in cash. Sabex, a leading Canadian manufacturer and distributor of injectable pharmaceutical products, is located in Boucherville, Quebec, with growing activities in the United States and international markets. Sabex was majority owned by RoundTable Healthcare Partners, a health-care industry focused private equity firm located in Lake Forest, Illinois.

The Novartis internal legal team was led by Paul Léger, and included Lee Stoller, Stuart Kruger, who took the lead on regulatory approvals, and Thea Discepola. Novartis’ external legal advisor was McMillan Binch LLP, with a team led by Michael Whitcombe and included John Paterson, David Wentzell, Neil Campbell, John Fox, Mark Young, James Doris and Sarah Diamond.

Sabex was represented by Desjardins Ducharme Stein Monast, with a team led by Marc Rochefort and included Jean-Sébastien Desroches, Marc Beauchemin, Serge Gloutnay, Fanny Brodeur and François Larose.

RoundTable Healthcare Partners was represented by Kirkland & Ellis LLP, with a team led by H. Kurt von Moltke and including Nick DiCrescenzo, Kevin Coenen and Jennifer Clarke-Smith.