FIRM ANALYSIS INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
Firm Briefings
focused in the Washington DC office, which promotes collaboration between the IP and regulatory practices on cross-disciplinary issues. Arnold & Porter represents GE Healthcare in a variety of ongoing matters including patent litigation involving fluorescent detection technology. Leading the charge in those matters was IP practice co-chair Matthew Wolf. Commended by fellow practitioners for his “courtroom savvy and litigation strategy,” Wolf has gained notoriety from peers with his trial work over the past year. He represented Boston Scientific successfully in two separate suits against Johnson & Johnson and Wyeth (Pfizer) concerning the drug-coated stents and anti-proliferative patents. In addition, Wolf obtained an infringement verdict and a subsequent permanent injunction for Hologic regarding accessories for mammography units. Choate Hall & Stewart Clients go to Choate Hall & Stewart for their non-contentious IP expertise and are thrilled about their experience working with the firm. “The technical advice they gave us before even getting into our legal problems was outstanding,” enthuses one client. “We had a long search for a law firm that could understand our specific needs and Choate delivered exactly what we wanted.” Headquartered in Boston, Choate has developed an outstanding IP practice in one of the industry’s m ost robust centers. While the firm is noted for its patent strategy and management work, it can also handle a range of other IP matters that clients face in the marketplace. One colleague believes, “Choate is getting stronger and stronger each year and they are broadening their entire life sciences practice to help cater to client’s needs.” Practice group leader Brenda Herschbach Jarrell is commended by peers as “easily one of the smartest attorneys in the Boston area, and in all likelihood, the entire country.” Her talent extends to different parts of Choate’s practice, as Jarrell was part of a team that worked with Agenus on a deal with GlaxoSmithKline. Moreover, Jarrell supports the firm’s IP litigation practice and is a member of the group counseling Momenta Pharmaceuticals in a patent infringement matter relating to Enoxaparin, a low molecular weight heparin. Cooley Genentech and Biocompatibilities are among a long list of companies that have worked with Cooley’s IP practice. Well known in the field for its corporate team, the firm has added several new partners to its national IP team to help support their clients. “They are both electing partners from within and hiring laterally over the last year or two and it has paid dividends,” notices one attorney. Two of Cooley’s most accomplished IP practitioners are Matthew Langer and Bill Christiansen. Christiansen is “wellversed on the technical side of the industry,” according to peers, while Langer is commended by a colleague for his, “combination of business expertise to go along with his patent protection skills.” He has done patent work for Cambridge-based Bluebird Bio, a company that develops innovative gene therapies for severe genetic disorders by building its IP platform through third party IP and pushing to allowance the use of IP necessary for the company’s clinical plan. Covington & Burling Litigation is where Covington & Burling flexes its muscle in the life sciences IP world. “When I think about the patent litigation team for Covington, I just think about all of the experience they have on that bench,” states one competitor. The firm has represented an outstanding number of major industry companies such as Johnson & Johnson and Sanofi-Aventis. Covington has the capacity to offer first-chair level litigators on several different matters simultaneously. George Pappas has been practicing for nearly four decades and is a great example of the firm’s litigation expertise. A fellow industry attorney describes Pappas as, “Nearly unbeatable in the courtroom, and someone I never look forward to facing, but always look forward to working with.” Along with partner Jeffrey Elikan, who is seen by colleagues as a, “deft and exceptional attorney,” Pappas represented Janssen Pharmaceuticals and obtained a decision upholding the validity of the patent covering Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo, Janssen’s birth control pill, which has an annual value of over $400 million per year. Supporting the litigation team is Covington’s Patent Reexamination, Prosecution, and Advisory practice chair Andrea Reister. “She plays a critical role in a lot of their major cases,” explains one practitioner. She is well known for her work within the patent office and is advising Nycomed US (part of Fougera Pharmaceuticals) in reexamination proceedings. “They go above and beyond,” is one way a client describes their experience working with the IP team at Covington. “They always had several approaches to different problems and were never surprised by anything that came their way in the course of litigation or prosecution.” Dechert Dechert’s life sciences IP practice is described by a contemporary as “very balanced.” The firm has strength in both contentious and non-contentious matters, creating a do-it-all environment for their clients. Endo Pharmaceuticals and Abbott Biotherapeutics are among Dechert’s highly esteemed clients. Partner Daniel Becker and Jonathan Loeb receive enormous amounts of praise from the marketplace. Clients love working with both attorneys, as well as the rest of Dechert’s IP team describing the group as, “equally smart and responsive.” Becker, who attorneys consider to be “an innovative thinker,” has done a lot of work in front of the USPTO, including prosecuting patents on behalf of Newron Pharmaceuticals. Loeb also is commended by his peers for “great Hatch-Waxman litigation techniques.” He was a member of a senior trial team representing Amgen in a patent infringement case that obtained a jury verdict in an infringement and validity matter involving a form of recombinant erythropoietin, a hormone that helps red blood cell production. Fenwick & West “A high-level of technical and legal experience and a staff of really great people to work with,” remarks one attorney about the life sciences group at Fenwick & West. With a strong presence in Silicon Valley, San Francisco, and Seattle, the firm is positioned in three of the largest life sciences markets in the country. Fenwick represents a wide variety of clients including therapeutic companies
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