Megan McMellon
Image of Megan McMellon

Megan McMellon

Senior Associate

Email

megan.mcmellon@aoshearman.com

Phone

+44 20 3088 1114

Offices

London

V-CARD
Megan helps clients navigate global transactions involving IP development and exploitation, as well as complex supply chains and other commercial arrangements.

Megan is Co- Lead Associate for the Consumer & Retail sector and has a particular focus on the Life Sciences and Consumer & Retail sectors. Megan advises on strategic collaboration and licensing transactions, as well as the IP/commercial aspects of M&A transactions. Her broad experience covers all stages of the product life cycle, including early-stage research, technology transfer, manufacturing and supply, distribution, sponsorship and other commercialisation activities.
 
Megan is valued by her clients for her genuine interest in their strategic aims and her understanding of the commercial practicalities behind the transactions she advises on. She has a global perspective, having worked in the firm's London, New York and Hong Kong offices.
 
Megan has been ranked by Legal500 as a leading associate for life sciences and healthcare since 2024, and by IP STARS as a rising star since 2025. She also received the IP Rising Star award at the LMG Life Sciences Awards in 2025.

Expertise

Industries

Experience

Representative matters

  • GlaxoSmithKline on its COVID/flu mRNA vaccine settlement and licensing arrangements with BioNTech, CureVac and Pfizer, its licensing agreements with SiranBio, Frontier Biotechnologies and Noetik, and its research collaboration with the University of Oxford focused on the potential of cancer prevention through vaccination.
  • Shionogi on its hearing loss collaborations with Saburitas and Cilcare, its sleep joint venture with Apnimed and subsequent acquisition of Apnimed’s equity interest, its antifungal collaboration with F2G, and its licence agreement with the Medicines Patent Pool for Shionogi’s COVID-19 antiviral candidate.
  • Exscientia on its AI drug discovery collaborations with Merck, Sanofi, Bristol Myers Squibb and GT Apeiron, and the IP/IT aspects of its combination with US based technology-enabled biotech company Recursion.
  • Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine on its research collaboration with Triana Biomedicines.
  • BioNTech on the IP/IT aspects of its acquisition of Biotheus, a PRC-based clinical stage biotech company.
  • Grünenthal on the IP/IT and supply chain aspects of its acquisition of Crestor in Europe from AstraZeneca.
  • Haleon on the IP/IT and supply chain aspects of its sale of ChapStick to Suave Brands, and the IP/IT aspects of its acquisition of Alligator Dental.
  • Associated British Foods on the IP/IT aspects of its proposed demerger of its retail business from its food business, and on the IP/IT aspects of its acquisition of Hovis Group.
  • L'Oréal Groupe on the IP/IT aspects of its acquisition of a majority stake in Medik8.
  • Wittington Investments on the IP/IT aspects of its sale of the Selfridges Group to Central Group and Signa Holding.
  • Majestic Wine (now Naked Wines) on the IP/IT aspects of its sale of its retail and commercial business to Fortress Investment Group.
  • Exponent on the IP/IT and supply chain aspects of its acquisition of International Flavor & Fragrances’s ‘Flavor Speciality Ingredients’ division (now known as Natara).
  • MBDA on its landmark £1.9 billion air defence export agreement with the Polish government, and its £4 billion+ UK-Poland air defence deal strengthening European security – the largest-ever commercial agreement between the UK and Poland.

Pro bono

  • Advising Refuge on commercial agreements with various corporate partners (2025 – present).
  • Pro bono secondment to European Lawyers in Lesvos (ELIL) in Mytilene through the Greece Pro Bono Collaborative (2024).
  • Hospital Liaison Volunteer for SANDS, the stillbirth and neonatal death charity (2024 – present).
  • Advising AfME on various collaboration and IP agreements (2024 – present).
  • Volunteer Vaccinator for COVID-19 with St John Ambulance (2021 – 2022).
  • Advising Safe Passage UK and Refugee Legal Support on the IP aspects of the Afghan Pro Bono Initiative (2022).
  • Advising the Brazzaville Foundation on its Lome initiative, which is an international agreement to combat the trafficking of substandard and falsified medicines in Africa (2020 – 2021).
  • Key member of the A&O team preparing Allen & Overy’s 2019 report regarding “The Recognition and Treatment of Relationships under Hong Kong Law”, commissioned by Hong Kong’s Equal Opportunities Commission (2018 – 2019).
  • Advising at Battersea Legal Advice Clinic (2017 – 2019).

Published Work

  • Megan McMellon, Zara Sproul, Jacqueline Bore, Rafi Allos, Melissa Duquemin and Eda Zhuleku (2020) “Covid-19 and the Life Sciences Sector”, Practical Law

Speaking Engagements

  • “Life sciences transaction trends”, European Pharma Law Academy, September 2024 and September 2025
  • “IP issues in JVs and collaborations”, IP Law Summer School, August 2024
  • “Strategic alliances and collaborations in the pharmaceutical sector”, European Pharma Law Academy, September 2022 and September 2023
  • “Intellectual Property in AI”, Boston Bar Association IP Year in Review, March 2023
     
     

Recognition

“I would recommend Zara Sproul and Megan McMellon for their exceptional client awareness, service and collaboration, making the business of [a specific matter] possible with great teamwork between in-house and external counsel.”
Chambers UK 2025
“Megan McMellon and Jim Ford, in particular, are very collaborative and easy to work with, as well as hard-working and smart.”
Legal 500 UK 2026

Awards

  • Rising Star, IP STARS, October 2025 and June 2026
  • IP Rising Star, LMG Life Sciences Awards, June 2025
  • Leading associate for life sciences and healthcare, Legal500, October 2024 and October 2025

Qualifications

Admissions

Admitted as a Solicitor (England and Wales), 2019

Academic

BA (Hons) Law and Business Studies (Qualifying Degree), First Class, University of Warwick, 2016

Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice, Distinction, BPP University, 2017

Certificate in IP Transactions: Law and Practice, Distinction, University College London, 2020

European Pharma Law Academy, 2022

Disclaimer
A&O Shearman was formed on May 1, 2024 by the combination of Shearman & Sterling LLP and Allen & Overy LLP and their respective affiliates (the legacy firms). Any matters referred to above may include matters undertaken by one or more of the legacy firms rather than A&O Shearman.