Represents venture-backed technology and digital health companies in acquisitions, financings, credit facilities, corporate governance, employment, and equity compensation matters

Represents investors in venture, growth, and strategic financings

Advises private equity funds on the financing, acquisition, and disposition of portfolio companies in control and non-control transactions

Counsels strategic buyers and sellers in M&A transactions, with a focus on digital health, health IT, and other healthcare companies

Jiayan Chen is an industry leader on matters relating to health data, technology and research. She represents clients on regulatory and compliance matters, commercial transactions, and investments and acquisitions that require deep knowledge of privacy, data strategies, artificial intelligence (AI) and other healthcare technologies, or research compliance. Clients turn to Jiayan for her practical, industry-informed guidance as they seek to develop, improve, deploy, or acquire solutions or businesses that harness the power of data or technology. Jiayan has extensive experience advising on investments and acquisitions in the life sciences sector, particularly with respect to businesses that conduct clinical research or offer solutions designed to accelerate research or research recruitment. Her practice includes working with patient safety organizations (PSOs) on listing applications, compliance, and strategies for appropriately creating and sharing patient safety work product.

Jiayan’s subject matter and industry insights come from advising a broad range of clients, including AI and other healthcare technology companies; data companies; hospitals and health systems; academic medical centers; genetics companies; digital health companies; PSOs; drug, device, and biotech companies; private equity funds; and platform companies.

Jiayan regularly counsels clients on data privacy requirements under US federal and state privacy law, including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and various state genetic, health information, and consumer privacy laws. She works with clients on mapping and implementing data use and sharing strategies with appropriate data governance and programmatic safeguards. Well before the proliferation of generative AI, Jiayan was working with AI developers and deployers on compliance with privacy and research laws, efforts to leverage data to train and validate AI tools, and transactions involving the licensing of AI tools and AI-enabled platforms. These days, Jiayan also guides clients in developing AI governance and advises on proposed regulatory and legislative changes impacting AI.

Jiayan represents clients on a wide array of matters related to biomedical research, including negotiating the full range of agreements impacting research, building research compliance infrastructure, preparing protocols and informed consent and authorizations, and conducting transactions involving research site networks, providers of research solutions and other stakeholders in the biomedical research space. Jiayan’s regulatory practice includes counseling clients on state and federal “sunshine” and gift ban laws. She analyzes proposed arrangements and corporate organizational structures to identify and inform reporting obligations, and helps clients develop compliance mechanisms for managing their reporting obligations.

Sam Siegfried is a trusted advisor on emerging healthcare technology matters, with a particular focus on data privacy and security, artificial intelligence (AI), clinical research, and complex technology transactions. He helps healthcare and life sciences companies navigate evolving regulations, maximize data-driven opportunities, and implement innovative technologies. He also conducts privacy and research diligence and negotiates transition services agreements for mergers and acquisitions, strategic investments, and joint ventures.

With extensive experience in key privacy frameworks, including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), Washington’s My Health My Data Act (MHMDA), the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and other evolving US and global data protection frameworks, Sam provides critical data strategy guidance to digital health platforms, genomic sequencing providers, health systems, biotech firms, and other health and life sciences organizations.

As AI reshapes healthcare delivery and innovation, Sam works closely with AI developers and deployers on AI governance programs, generative AI use, and consumer protection risks. In the clinical research space, he advises on federal and state research regulations, research compliance program development, research informed consent, and Institutional Review Board (IRB) requirements.

Beyond his regulatory practice, Sam structures and negotiates complex commercial transactions, including data licensing agreements, software as a service (SaaS) and other technology platform agreements, AI development partnerships, research collaborations, and clinical trial agreements.

Before joining McDermott, Sam served as in-house counsel at an academic medical center and a precision medicine startup, handling complex privacy, research, and healthcare regulatory challenges. This frontline experience informs his pragmatic approach, allowing him to deliver solutions that seamlessly integrate compliance with business objectives.