Sofinnova recruits its first general counsel

European life science firm Sofinnova Partners has appointed Armance Bordes as its first general counsel. Bordes joins the Paris-based firm from French private equity investor Eurazeo where she spent 10 years.

Prior to Eurazeo, where Bordes was deputy general counsel and secretary of the board of directors, she was an M&A lawyer at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher in Paris and also had a short stint at law firm Linklaters.

The hire continues the growing trend for private equity firms to hire dedicated legal professionals. Last month Scandinavian buyout firm Nordic Capital recruited its first general counsel.

A spokesperson for Sofinnova told pfm the firm had created the role owing to increased activity. Bordes will oversee the firm’s legal and regulatory activity and work closely with chief financial officer Christophe Blanche, who joined the firm in late 2016.

“Armance’s experience and acute understanding of the business is a major asset in a period of increased activity, with notably the launch of new funds such as Sofinnova Crossover I which announced a closing in April at €275 million,” said Monique Saulnier, managing partner and chief operating officer.

The firm’s Crossover fund is an effort to broaden its life sciences platform to invest across the value chain, from seed stage to late-stage healthcare companies.

The firm also recently closed its Industrial Biotech I fund on €125 million, the largest European fund dedicated to investment in the chemicals industry. Earlier this month the firm led a €26.5 million financing in Italian biotech company EryDel.