Johnson & Johnson’s $3.4 Billion Acquisition of Auris Health, Inc.

On February 13, 2019, Johnson & Johnson announced that Ethicon, Inc., entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Auris Health, Inc. (“Auris Health”) for approximately $3.4 billion in cash. Additional contingent payments of up to $2.35 billion, in the aggregate, may be payable upon reaching certain predetermined milestones. Auris Health is a privately held developer of robotic technologies, initially focused in lung cancer, with an FDA‑cleared platform currently used in bronchoscopic diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. Cravath is representing Johnson & Johnson in connection with the transaction.

The Cravath team is led by partners Robert I. Townsend III on M&A matters and Jonathan J. Katz on executive compensation and benefits matters, and includes associates Matthew G. Jones and Jin‑Kyu Baek on M&A matters; associate Matthew J. Bobby, practice area attorney Michelle M. Garrett and associate Jacob M. Phillips on executive compensation and benefits matters; partner J. Leonard Teti II and associates Andrew T. Davis and Andrew L. Mandelbaum on tax matters; partner David J. Kappos on intellectual property matters; and partner Matthew Morreale on environmental matters. Michael P. E. Dooley, Carly J. Goeman and Ashkan Towhid also worked on M&A matters, and Dixing Tang worked on executive compensation and benefits matters.