This is what is known as a "Trojan Horse" offer. That is, a friendly private equity firm, perhaps a firm where J&J is already a major limited investment partner, is encouraged to make a strategic offer for a property so as to set a floor for later, higher offers. In a sense this offer is a signal to the Chinese firm Sinocare to get off of their asses make a legitimate offer and stop screwing around. This type of offer became popular in the 1980s (and ever since) and was discussed in detail in the famous M&A allegory book Barbarians at the Gate.

This private equity firm will most likely NOT be the eventual acquirer.

For those who only care about DECN's lawsuit, the lawsuit is not at the stage of being addressed yet, at least not by this type of offer designed primarily for press coverage. Stay tuned. A 60-90 day clock has started.