Bill applies his extensive mergers and acquisitions and venture capital financing experience primarily to deal work for life sciences companies. He helps clients thrive at every stage of the corporate life cycle by piloting them through the initial organization phase, stock and debt financings, IPOs, alliances, and business combinations. He ably advises biotechnology, medical technology, healthcare IT, and other types of technology companies. Bill also counsels venture capital firms about their portfolio investments.
Bill focuses his practice on securities law, venture capital, and mergers and acquisitions. He regularly represents technology-based companies, principally in the areas of biotechnology, medical technologies, healthcare IT, and other technology sectors. He routinely counsels these clients on many aspects of their corporate development, from initial organization and acquisition of technology, through private financing and initial public offering, to strategic alliances and business combination transactions. He regularly represents venture capital firms in portfolio investment activities and underwriters in public offerings and private placements of equity securities. Bill is also a key contributor to MintzEdge, an online resource for entrepreneurs that includes useful tools and information for starting and growing a company.
Bill is a member of Mass Medical Angels and the New England Healthcare Executives Network, and regularly participates in activities of BIO and MassMEDIC.
During law school, he served as editor-in-chief of the Boston University Law Review. Bill is a former law clerk to the Chief Judge of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
Bill applies his extensive mergers and acquisitions and venture capital financing experience primarily to deal work for life sciences companies. He helps clients thrive at every stage of the corporate life cycle by piloting them through the initial organization phase, stock and debt financings, IPOs, alliances, and business combinations. He ably advises biotechnology, medical technology, healthcare IT, and other types of technology companies. Bill also counsels venture capital firms about their portfolio investments.
Experience
Mergers & Acquisitions
- Represented Censa Pharmaceuticals in its option/collaboration/acquisition transaction with Retrophin (NASDAQ: RTRX)
- Represented Allegro Diagnostics in its merger with Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ: VCYT)
- Represented Ember Corporation in its merger with Silicon Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ: SLAB)
- Represented Pluromed, Inc. in its merger with Sanofi
- Represented Boston Biomedical, Inc. in its merger with Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma Co., Ltd.
- Represented Caliper Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: CALP) in its merger with PerkinElmer, Inc. (NYSE: PKI)
- Represented Visigen Biotechnologies, Inc. in its merger with Invitrogen Corporation (currently known as Life Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: LIFE))
- Represented V.I. Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: VITX) in its merger with Panacos Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: PANC)
- Represented EPIX Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: EPIX) in its merger with Predix Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
- Represented Caliper Life Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: CALP) in its merger with Xenogen Corporation (NASDAQ: XGEN)
- Represented Focus Technologies Holding Company in its acquisition by Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE: DGX)
- Represented the MacGregror Group, Inc. in its acquisition by Investment Technology Group, Inc. (NYSE: ITG)
Public & Private Offerings for Public Companies
- Represented Quanterix Corporation (NASDAQ: QTRX) in its initial public offering
- Represented NuCana (NASDAQ: NCNA) in its initial public offering
- Represented Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ICPT) in its initial public offering
- Represented BG Medicine, Inc. (Nasdaq: BGMD) in its initial public offering
- Represented Coley Pharmaceutical Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: COLY) in its initial public offering
- Represented Panacos Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: PANC) in a follow-on public offering
- Represented EPIX Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: EPIX) in its initial public offering and a Rule 144A offering of convertible notes
- Represented Predix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in its initial public offering
Venture Capital Financings
- Represented Quanterix Corporation in its Series D Preferred Stock financing
- Represented Vedanta Biosciences in its Series B Preferred Stock financing
- Represented ERX Pharmacueticals, Inc. in its initial institutional preferred stock financing
- Represented Caribou Biosciences, Inc. in its Series B Preferred Stock financing
- Represented Biogen Inc. in its preferred stock investment in Yumanity, Inc.
- Represented Anchor Therapeutics, Inc. in various preferred stock and debt financings
- Represented Pulmatrix, Inc. in various preferred stock and debt financings
- Represented Luminus Devices, Inc. in various preferred stock and debt financings
viewpoints
Deal Activity Takeaways from JPM 2024
January 19, 2024 | Blog | By William Whelan
Life Sciences Newsletter — September 2021
September 1, 2021 | Article | By Adam Lenain, William Whelan, Jonathan L. Kravetz , Terri Shieh-Newton
BAND TOGETHER: Corporate & Cultural Convergence in Life Sciences M&A
June 24, 2020 | | By William Whelan, Joshua D. Fox
News & Press
The Best Lawyers in America 2025 Recognizes 184 Mintz Attorneys across 56 Practice Areas
August 15, 2024
187 Mintz attorneys have been recognized by Best Lawyers® in the 2025 edition of The Best Lawyers in America©. Notably, three Mintz attorneys received 2025 “Lawyer of the Year” awards, and 64 firm attorneys were included in the 2025 edition of Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch.
Mintz is pleased to announce that 120 firm attorneys have been recognized as leaders by Best Lawyers® in the 2024 edition of The Best Lawyers in America©.
BOSTON – Mintz has earned top rankings in the 2023 edition of Legal 500 United States guide. The firm is recognized in 14 practice categories, and 59 individual attorneys are also recognized in the guide, some in more than one category.
Mintz Leads For CXLO In $32 Million Series A Fundraising
September 30, 2022
Mintz represented CXL Ophthalmics (CXLO), a clinical-stage company developing a minimally-invasive treatment for keratoconus, in a $32 million Series A round of fundraising.
Best Lawyers® recognized 108 firm attorneys in the 2023 edition of The Best Lawyers in America©. Notably, two Mintz attorneys – Poonam Patidar and Scott M. Stanton – received 2023 “Lawyer of the Year” awards, and 28 firm attorneys were included in the inaugural edition of Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch.
Law360's 2022 Life Sciences Editorial Board
April 25, 2022
Biopharma M&A Set for a Strong H2 Despite Political Noise—and Biogen and Gilead Look Like Buyers: Analysts
June 28, 2021
Law360's 2021 Life Sciences Editorial Board
April 13, 2021
Mintz, Mergermarket Publish Life Sciences M&A Report
June 24, 2020
Mintz Practice Groups and Attorneys Garner Top Rankings in 2020 Edition of The Legal 500 United States
June 12, 2020
Mintz is Official Platinum Sponsor of Powering Precision Health Summit 2016
September 21, 2016
Events & Speaking
M&A Panel on Current Trends in the HCLS Industry
9th Annual IBA World Life Sciences Conference
MassMEDIC MedTech Showcase
Massachusetts Medical Device Industry Council
Westin Hotel, 70 3rd Ave, Waltham, MA
Northeast M&A and Life Sciences Innovation Forum
Thomson Reuters Legal Executive Institute
Boston, MA
3rd Annual International Bar Association (IBA) World Life Sciences Conference
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Boston Biotech CEO Conference
Boston Biotech Conferences
Four Seasons Hotel, 200 Boylston Street, Boston, MA
Innovative Ways to Fund Your Early Stage Company
MassBio 2015 Annual Meeting
Royal Sonseta Hotel, Cambridge, MA
Bill applies his extensive mergers and acquisitions and venture capital financing experience primarily to deal work for life sciences companies. He helps clients thrive at every stage of the corporate life cycle by piloting them through the initial organization phase, stock and debt financings, IPOs, alliances, and business combinations. He ably advises biotechnology, medical technology, healthcare IT, and other types of technology companies. Bill also counsels venture capital firms about their portfolio investments.
Recognition & Awards
Recommended by The Legal 500 United States for Healthcare: Life Sciences (2013, 2015 - 2022, 2024)
Chambers USA: Massachusetts – Corporate/Mergers & Acquisitions (2014 – 2017)
Best Lawyers in America: Biotechnology and Life Sciences Practice (2013 – 2025); Securities and Capital Markets Law (2023 – 2025)
Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent
Bill applies his extensive mergers and acquisitions and venture capital financing experience primarily to deal work for life sciences companies. He helps clients thrive at every stage of the corporate life cycle by piloting them through the initial organization phase, stock and debt financings, IPOs, alliances, and business combinations. He ably advises biotechnology, medical technology, healthcare IT, and other types of technology companies. Bill also counsels venture capital firms about their portfolio investments.
Involvement
- Editorial Board, Life Sciences, Law360 2022
- Past member, MIT Innovations Committee
- Member, American Bar Association
- Member, Massachusetts Bar Association
- Member, Boston Bar Association
- Member, 4th Annual International Bar Association (IBA) World Life Sciences Conference Supporting Committee (2016)
- Member, Mass Medical Angels
- Member of the Advisory Board of Boston Ballet
- Member, Japan Society of Boston
- Board Member, Animal Rescue League of Boston