Complex commercial transactions

A&O Shearman advises the world’s leading businesses on their most challenging, high value commercial contracts and projects. 

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We advise on collaboration deals and joint ventures at the forefront of fast-changing industries including energy transition, life sciences, technology and beyond.  

We guide our clients on the formation, operation and termination of these deals, supporting them to structure and negotiate contracts and manage the relationship with their partners.  

Our advice extends to the full range of complex, multijurisdictional agreements covering IP licensing, sponsorships, outsourcing, supply and distribution, manufacturing, and arrangements covering the exploitation of technology. 

We structure and negotiate robust agreements, drawing on the expertise of our regulatory, data, tax, finance, employment, antitrust, public procurement and IP lawyers to deliver integrated solutions.

We are at the forefront of developing tools to enable clients to deliver consistency and efficiency with their commercial contracts. ContractMatrix is our contract drafting and negotiation tool which uses generative AI and other techniques to free lawyers from processing, allowing them to focus on strategic questions. 

Representative matters

  • Exscientia on all of its commercially significant AI discovery partnerships, including its USD5.2 billion multi-target collaboration with Sanofi. 
  • A premier league football club on its sponsorship and merchandising deal with Adidas, involving various supplier, sponsorship, promotional, advertising and marketing rights. 
  • A global financial institution in relation to its provision of various outsourced services to an asset management company for a term of up to 20 years, across seven jurisdictions. 
  • A Middle-Eastern oil and gas company on its strategic partnership with the Aston Martin Formula 1 team. 
  • A global vaccines company on its master manufacturing agreement with a multinational pharmaceutical corporation for the manufacture of mRNA-based vaccines. 
  • Vitality Group, a leading global insuretech platform, on the establishment of a new pan-Asian digital health technology platform in partnership with AIA Company Limited. 
  • Sanlam on its joint venture with Allianz, to combine their current and future operations in Africa, creating the largest Pan-African non-banking financial services entity. 
  • Liberty Global, Telefónica and Virgin Media O2 (VMO2) on the formation of a joint venture between LG, Telefónica and InfraVia Capital Partners to build a new fibre network to up to 7 million homes in the U.K. 
  • A large Asian e-commerce platform, in relation to a software (API) license agreement with Google in the context of the development of a new e-commerce app. 

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