Mintz advised Relation Therapeutics, a technology-enabled biopharmaceutical company, on its strategic collaboration with Novartis, leading on the negotiation of an equity investment from Novartis.

As part of the collaboration deal, Relation will receive $55 million from Novartis, comprising an upfront payment, equity investment, and research and development funding. Relation is also eligible for up to an additional $1.7 billion in preclinical, development, regulatory, and commercial sales milestones, as well as tiered royalties on net sales of products.

The strategic partnership pairs Relation’s AI-powered drug discovery platform and human data generation capabilities with Novartis’ expertise in immuno-dermatology to advance the identification and validation of atopic disease targets driven by immune dysregulation.

Mintz also represented Relation in connection with an additional investment of $26 million from existing investors NVentures (NVIDIA’s venture capital arm) and leading deeptech investors DCVC and Magnetic Ventures.

Benjamin Swerner, COO and founder of Relation said: “We’ve been working with Sarah from the beginning, and we could not be happier with her dedication to client service, legal expertise, and business-minded approach.”

The Mintz team was led by Sarah Palmer, who advised Relation alongside Patrick Farrant and his team at Mishcon de Reya. Sarah has been a trusted legal advisor of Relation since its incorporation.

More information about these transactions is available here and here.