LAWYER
Jennifer Csik Hutchens
Partner | Charlotte
Jennifer Csik Hutchens

Jennifer Csik Hutchens, partner in Dechert’s corporate practice, leads the firm’s healthcare regulatory practice and is a leader for multi-disciplinary healthcare and life sciences initiatives. Ms. Hutchens is a leading, globally recognized counselor and trusted advisor in healthcare law. She brings broad industry and regulated experience, for a diverse range of clients, across the spectrum of their legal needs — from structuring and efficiently closing sophisticated transactions to achieving compliance with operational and risk management intricacies.

A skilled and versatile corporate lawyer, Ms. Hutchens excels in providing commercially practical and responsive counsel to strategic entities, institutional investors, private equity-backed healthcare funds, portfolio companies and roll-up networks. Around the country, hospitals, academic medical centers, clinical research groups, ancillary service providers, non-profits, management services organizations and medical device companies also call on Ms. Hutchens for her acute understanding of how to implement and execute on their healthcare business objectives.

Her nearly two-decade transactional practice focuses on joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions, and other collaboration transactions, having structured, successfully negotiated, and closed hundreds of healthcare transactions. Ms. Hutchens is a frequent national lecturer on effective healthcare transactions and negotiations.

Clients also frequently look to Ms. Hutchens for solutions to their most critical healthcare contracting arrangements — from professional services, to managed care and value-based care. She manages her clients’ significant healthcare contracting portfolios. Ms. Hutchens has served as her clients’ one-stop-shop for comprehensive contracting coverage, negotiating and interpreting managed care and participation agreements, navigating risk- and value-based reimbursement methodologies and addressing related compliance and technical considerations. She also has notable experience with CMS innovation models, such as the Accountable Care Organization Realizing Equity, Access and Community Health (ACO REACH) Model.

Ms. Hutchens also often directly works with boards of directors and senior management teams on corporate structure, governance and pre-litigation matters at the most critical intersections of the evolving area of healthcare law and regulation. She has extensive experience interpreting federal and state healthcare guidance, including the Anti-Kickback and Stark laws, corporate practice of medicine and fee-splitting prohibitions, federal Physician Sunshine Transparency Act, surprise/balance billing laws and price transparency rules.

Having previously held a global leadership role at an international law firm, Ms. Hutchens is highly sought after for her US regulated expertise in the healthcare sector. She leverages this expertise to help global ventures, particularly in the R&D space, commercialize their developments within US reimbursement models. She is a member of the firm’s Israeli client team, and regularly works to support clients in collaboration with the firm's EMEA offices.

Ms. Hutchens is at the forefront of advising on cutting-edge areas in healthcare, life sciences and privacy/HIPAA, specifically FemTech, behavioral health and digital transformation. In particular, she advises clients on implementing novel, first-of-their-kind solutions on matters relating to health innovation, including artificial intelligence (AI), telehealth and concierge medicine. Ms. Hutchens also aids companies — including retailers — in pivoting into the healthcare and life sciences industries for the first time, delivering strategic and innovative solutions.

Ms. Hutchens is passionate about community connection and mental health. She serves on the Board of Directors of Alexander Youth Foundation, the largest provider of mental health services for children in the state of North Carolina.

Strategic, Operational and Compliance Counsel

  • A global leader in lab testing and scientific innovation in strategic, operational and compliance mandates driving revenue, digital transformation and compliance with price transparency.  
  • An international public healthcare company in conducting healthcare due diligence review and providing analysis on its US$2 billion acquisition of a home dialysis equipment maker.
  • A private equity-backed national radiology platform and its affiliated practices and service lines on a variety of corporate, healthcare, operational and regulatory matters.
  • A preeminent retailer for pet products, supplies and prescriptions, including those related to health, insurance and pharma platform offerings.
  • A private equity-backed urgent care platform on multi-state scope of practice, licensure, and other regulated business and legal considerations essential to new business rollout and scaling.
  • North Carolina health system in connection with its pilot virtual hospital program offering for orthopedic patient recovery.
  • Out-of-state buyers/sellers on state, local laws and regulations in the Carolinas.
  • Mid-Western health system with regular operational and compliance advice and counsel, including value-based care arrangements and new patient program rollouts.
  • A variety of healthcare industry clients in connection with telemedicine, digital health, remote patient monitoring/prescribing and virtual care; including specific experience with dentistry, dermatology and veterinary medicine, among other sub-specializations.

Outside General Counsel

  • The national testing organization for optometry in connection to general counsel advice on various legal matters.
  • An innovative joint venture composed of 12 health systems formed to operate a provider-led and patient-centered health plan participating in the North Carolina Managed Medicaid Program, in connection to general counsel advice on various legal matters.
  • A North Carolina critical access hospital with general counsel advice on legal, transactional and strategic matters.
  • A collaborative business venture between seven behavioral health providers pursuing innovation in care in North Carolina, in relation to general counsel advice on a range of matters.

Transaction/Corporate Healthcare Counsel

  • A national healthcare corporation in the negotiation and development of joint venture operations with other hospitals and physician partners.
  • A national healthcare corporation in its purchases of a wide range of business operations, including dialysis clinics, vascular access centers and physician practice management services.
  • A North Carolina insurance company in acquiring minority interest in an urgent care company with multistate clinic operations.
  • Healthcare industry stakeholders (including providers and professional and trade organizations) in the development of business relationships, affiliations, combinations and integrations.

Includes matters handled at Dechert or prior to joining the firm.

  • Healthcare: North Carolina – Chambers USA (2018-2024)
  • Healthcare Power List – North Carolina Lawyers Weekly (2023)
  • Healthcare – North Carolina Super Lawyers (2023-2024)
  • Rising Star – North Carolina Super Lawyers (2013-2021)
  • Mentor – Career Choices in Law, Charlotte Mecklenburg Middle Schools (2023 – present)
  • Charlotte Healthcare Law Lawyer of the Year – Best Lawyers in America (2018)
  • Admissions Interviewer – Duke Alumni Admissions Program (2007 – present)
  • Scholar and Alumna – Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation (1999 – present)
  • Scholar and Alumna – Toyota Scholars (1999 – present)
A Selection of Events
  • Hot Collaboration Considerations: Healthcare Joint Ventures in 2025 and Beyond - American Health Law Association, Annual Meeting, San Diego, CA (June 30, 2025)
  • The Fundamentals of Health Care Transactions: Case Study and Perspectives from In-House and Outside Counsel Teams – American Health Law Association, 2024 Fundamentals of Health Law Conference, Chicago, IL (November 19, 2024)
  • Primer on Health Care Transactions: In-House and Outside Counsel Conversations – American Health Law Association, 2024 Health Care Transactions Conference, Nashville, TN (April 15, 2024)
  • International Expansion: Select Global Legal and Compliance Considerations – St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN (March 19, 2024)
  • FemTech: US Legal Considerations at a Glance – Client webinar (March 7, 2024)
  • Health Care Buzz in 2023: What You Need to Know to be a Good Partner – Home Medical Equipment National Conference, Charlotte, NC (October 23, 2023)
  • Primer on Health Care Transactions: In-House and Outside Counsel Conversations – AHLA Health Care Transactions Conference, Nashville, TN (April 17-19, 2023)
  • Mentorship – What Works, What Doesn’t and Where to Begin – AHLA webinar (June 24, 2021)
  • U.S. Health Care Industry: Risk Mitigation Tips in the Post-Supervalu FCA Landscape – Client webinar (June 15, 2023)
  • AKS and Stark Law 2021 Updates: Driving Innovation – Client webinar (May 7, 2021)
  • Telehealth, Remote Care and Home Care – Legal and Practical Considerations i2i Center for Integrative Health webinar (December 2, 2020)
  • The Fundamentals of Health Care Transactions – AHLA Fundamentals of Health Law Conference, Chicago, IL (November 13, 2020)
  • Deeper Dive into Health Care Transactions: Adding Value in Deal Negotiations – AHLA Fundamentals of Health Law Conference, Chicago, IL (November 13, 2020)
  • COVID-19 Behavioral Health Virtual Roundtable Series: What’s Next? – Client webinar (July 21, 2020)
  • COVID-19 Behavioral Health Virtual Roundtable Series: Deeper Dive on Employment and Labor –  Client webinar (May 13, 2020)
  • Health Care Practice Group Virtual Roundtable Series: COVID-19 & Medical Practices – Client webinar (May 1, 2020)
  • COVID-19 Behavioral Health Virtual Roundtable Series: Telehealth Deeper Dive – Client webinar (April 30, 2020)
  • Behavioral Health Virtual Roundtable Series: Protecting Your Organization and COVID-19 – Client webinar (April 16, 2020)
  • Health Care Practice Group Virtual Roundtable Series: Innovative Businesses Shift to Respond to COVID-19 – Client webinar (April 9, 2020)
  • Behavioral Health Virtual Roundtable Series: COVID-19 & NC’s Behavioral Health Industry – Client webinar (April 3, 2020)
Services Industries
    • Duke University, B.A., 2003, summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa
    • Duke University School of Law, J.D., 2007, summa cum laude, Order of the Coif
    • North Carolina
    • American Health Law Association, Board of Directors & Finance Committee
    • North Carolina Bar Association
    • North Carolina Society of Health Care Attorneys
    • American College of Healthcare Executives
    • Women Business Leaders of the U.S. Health Care Industry Foundation
    • Greater Charlotte Healthcare Executives
    • American Bar Foundation Fellow