John L. Higgins

Who is John L. Higgins?

John L. Higgins is President, Chief Executive Officer and a member of

the Board of Directors of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Inc. Prior to joining

Ligand, Mr. Higgins served as Chief Financial Officer and Executive

Vice President, Finance and Administration and Corporate Development,

of Connetics Corporation, a specialty pharmaceutical company acquired

by Stiefel Laboratories in December 2006. Before joining Connetics, he

was a member of the executive management team at BioCryst

Pharmaceuticals. Currently, he is a Director of BioCryst and serves as

Chairperson of its Audit Committee. Prior to BioCryst, Mr. Higgins was

a member of the healthcare banking team of Dillon, Read Co. Inc.,

an investment banking firm. Mr. Higgins has served as a director of

numerous public and private companies. He graduated Magna Cum Laude

from Colgate University with an AB in economics.