Having spent seven years practising corporate law at Slaughter and May, and Ropes & Gray, Iqbal joined Johnson & Johnson, the world’s largest healthcare company, where he served as head of legal for Johnson & Johnson’s London Innovation Centre and was subsequently promoted to legal director for M&A. It was there that he led the corporate transactions in the EMEA region across consumer healthcare, pharmaceutical and medical devices business.
Iqbal’s arrival will further expand and strengthen Reed Smith’s corporate practice, bringing significant additional M&A and corporate capabilities in the life sciences sector. In addition, Iqbal’s experience includes advising on early and late stage research and development transactions, global divestments, licensing, equity investments, and strategic collaborations. Iqbal has advised on transactions with large, medium and small cap medical devices, pharmaceutical, consumer health care and biotechnology companies, governmental institutions, investment vehicles, universities and entrepreneurs. He has been recognised by his clients and colleagues with several Leadership and Encore Awards.
Delphine Currie, co-chair of the Global Corporate Group, said: “It has been our ambition to continue to deepen the bench strength of our corporate practice and to grow our life sciences capabilities in the UK. Iqbal’s technical expertise coupled with his deep life sciences sector knowledge make him a unique hire and a fantastic addition to the firm.”
Andrew Jenkinson, London office managing partner, said: “We are delighted to further enhance our capabilities with Iqbal’s arrival in the London office. He will be an exceptional asset to our clients.”
Iqbal commented: “Reed Smith provides a unique opportunity with its market-leading Global Corporate Group whose client base and industry focus are a perfect fit with my own expertise.”
“My time in-house has been invaluable and has given me an excellent understanding of what clients need from their outside counsel. I am very excited to return to private practice with Reed Smith and to foster further collaboration between the firm’s Life Sciences and Healthcare Industry group and the Global Corporate Group.”
Reed Smith’s European corporate practice has undergone significant growth over the past few years with the arrival of a multijurisdictional team from King & Wood Mallesons at the start of 2017 specialising in corporate, M&A, private equity, capital markets and tax; a tax team from Winston & Strawn in Paris later that year, and the addition of Florian Hirschmann in Munich in 2018. In total, Reed Smith’s corporate team across Europe and the Middle East currently stands at over 100 lawyers.
About Reed Smith
Reed Smith is a dynamic international law firm dedicated to helping clients move their businesses forward. Our belief is that by delivering smarter and more creative legal services, we will not only enrich our clients’ experiences with us, but also support them in achieving their business goals.
Our long-standing relationships, international outlook and collaborative structure, make us the go-to partner for the speedy resolution of complex disputes, transactions and regulatory matters. For further information, please visit reedsmith.com.
