Health Care + Life Sciences

Troutman Pepper Locke is recognized in Chambers USA and The Legal 500 as having one of the top privacy practices in the U.S. The firm’s incident response team has led the response to thousands of security incidents involving some of the largest retail, health care, banking, and government agencies, collectively impacting more than 1 billion people. In one matter, Troutman attorneys counseled a nationwide health insurance company through multidistrict litigation involving 100+ consolidated class actions arising from a cybersecurity incident.

The firm advises digital health clients on HIPAA, HITECH, and FTC data regulations as part of bringing telehealth platforms and mobile medical apps to market — including counseling on FDA Software as a Medical Device requirements, state telehealth licensure, and health data interoperability obligations.

For HIPAA compliance program design, violation defense, and breach response, see our Health Care Regulatory page.

Troutman Pepper Locke advises biotechnology companies, pharmaceutical sponsors, research institutions, and life sciences investors on the full range of corporate, intellectual property, regulatory, and transactional matters. The firm’s dedicated biotech lawyers are part of a health care and life sciences intellectual property team that includes patent attorneys and patent agents with scientific and technical backgrounds — many holding doctorate or master’s degrees — who handle patent prosecution, portfolio management, post-grant proceedings, licensing and collaboration agreements, IP due diligence, and patent litigation. On the transactional side, the firm’s life sciences lawyers guide sellers, buyers, special committees, and financial advisors through M&A, joint ventures, venture capital and early-stage financings, capital markets transactions, and licensing and collaboration arrangements from pre-clinical through commercialization.

Notable representations by the firm’s biotechnology attorneys and litigators include securing a favorable decision in a landmark USPTO patent interference proceeding over CRISPR technology, as well as consecutive multimillion-dollar public offerings for a single clinical-stage biotechnology company spanning U.S. and Canadian markets. For life sciences IP matters, the firm has served as lead IP counsel in a $32 billion pharmaceutical acquisition covering 20+ commercial and pipeline products focused on rare disease treatments, and handled IP due diligence and counsel on royalty provisions, patent exclusivity, and trademark coverage in a $6.5 billion acquisition of a biotechnology company focused on the treatment of a rare hereditary condition.

For life sciences startups and early-stage companies, the firm also offers Troutman SEED — a structured program providing affordable legal counsel covering formation, seed financing, venture capital, and the essential agreements needed to bring novel therapies and technologies to market.

Troutman Pepper Locke represents pharmaceutical and medical device companies in regulatory counseling and litigation across the product lifecycle. The firm’s pharma attorneys advise clients on drug and device development, clinical trials, promotional counseling and review, regulatory submissions, safety reporting, and enforcement risk.

On the litigation side, Troutman Pepper Locke has 60+ years of experience defending pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers against tens of thousands of individual personal injury claims — whether presented individually, in MDLs, or in coordinated state court proceedings — as well as class actions by consumers and third-party payors. Troutman has, among other notable cases, served as national defense counsel for a global medical device manufacturer in numerous product liability trials, securing full defense verdicts in two separate hip implant cases, and has defended a major pharma company against “reverse payment” (pay-for-delay) antitrust litigation under the Sherman Act. Troutman’s product liability and pharmaceutical litigation practice is recognized by The Legal 500 for Product Liability & Mass Torts: Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices.

Pharmaceuticals attorneys at the firm also advise on False Claims Act matters, Anti-Kickback Statute compliance, and DOJ and state attorney general investigations involving off-label promotion. The firm has served as national coordinating counsel and settlement counsel for clients facing the simultaneous challenges of mass tort litigation, grand jury investigations, and regulatory actions — the kind of multi-front exposure that pharmaceuticals lawyers at Troutman are equipped to manage across the FDA, DOJ, CMS, and other agencies.

Troutman Pepper Locke’s FDA attorneys and biotechnology lawyers counsel manufacturers and developers of pharmaceuticals, biologics, active pharmaceutical ingredients, orphan drug and breakthrough therapies, medical devices, radiation-emitting products, over-the-counter drugs, cosmetics, and personal care products on federal and state regulatory compliance, approval strategy, and enforcement risk specific to their product category. The firm’s clinical trials practice extends to the full contracting lifecycle — including CRO and CDMO commercial contracts, informed consent forms, and pharmacovigilance obligations — for sponsors, CROs, and research institutions across all major therapeutic areas.

When clients face critical enforcement challenges — including warning letters, import alerts, consent decrees, and FDA investigations — Troutman’s FDA lawyers develop response strategies. The firm advises on digital health and health technology regulatory compliance and represents clients in interactions with CMS regarding fraud and abuse implications. The firm’s strong Washington, D.C., presence gives clients direct access to attorneys who regularly engage with the FDA, DOJ, HHS, and other federal regulators across the full range of health care and life sciences matters.

Troutman Pepper Locke handles every stage of a life sciences transaction — from seed financing and early-stage venture capital through M&A, capital markets, licensing and collaboration agreements, and exit strategies. The firm’s life sciences attorneys advise emerging growth companies, established pharmaceutical and medical device companies, private equity funds, and financial institutions on domestic and cross-border deals of all sizes. Recognized by LMG Life Sciences Americas, Troutman Pepper Locke assists with structuring and negotiating M&A transactions, licensing and collaboration arrangements, and joint ventures. The firm also advises on SEC reporting and compliance for public life sciences companies, provides ongoing public company governance counsel, and handles capital markets transactions including IPOs, public offerings, and private placements.

The firm’s deal teams include life sciences lawyers and colleagues who work on IP matters, FDA regulatory compliance, antitrust and HSR clearance, tax issues, executive compensation and employment issues, and real estate. In one notable transaction, the firm advised a global electronic instruments and electromechanical devices company on its $1.9 billion acquisition of a medical device manufacturer, including IP, bankruptcy/restructuring, employee benefits, and corporate matters.

Troutman Pepper Locke’s Health Care and Life Sciences practice ranked No. 10 out of 53 firms on Modern Healthcare‘s 2026 Largest Health Care Law Firms list — one of the most widely cited measures of scale and depth in the health care legal market. The firm is also recognized by The Legal 500 for health care and life sciences, with the firm’s product liability and pharmaceutical litigation practice recognized for Product Liability & Mass Torts: Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices. The firm’s 350+ attorneys and professionals deliver corporate, intellectual property, regulatory, and litigation counsel to health systems, physician groups, managed care organizations, pharmaceutical and medical device makers, digital health platforms, and life sciences investors — serving clients at every stage from formation and early-stage financing through M&A, post-market compliance, and high-profile litigation.

Troutman Pepper Locke’s managed care and payor disputes practice advises health insurers, HMOs, managed care organizations, and PBMs on network contract disputes, utilization review challenges, state and federal regulatory investigations, and value-based care arrangements. The firm’s health care business lawyers have advised health care and life sciences clients for 60+ years, serving important industry markets across the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Texas, and beyond.

The firm’s managed care experience spans complex, multi-jurisdictional matters — including defending a Fortune 50 health insurer in ERISA class actions, network contract disputes, and utilization review challenges across multiple jurisdictions. In a separate notable case, Troutman obtained dismissal of a six-count ERISA complaint involving $1.2 million in health care benefits. Troutman also advises on health care real estate transactions including acquisitions, ground leases, joint ventures, MOBs, hospitals, assisted living, and senior housing.