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Four Morrison Foerster Partners Shortlisted in LMG Life Sciences Americas Awards

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Four Morrison Foerster partners have been shortlisted in the LMG Life Sciences Americas Awards for 2024.

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Four Morrison Foerster partners have been shortlisted in the LMG Life Sciences Americas Awards for 2024. LMG Life Sciences Americas’ 12th annual awards program aims to highlight the best in lawyers in the industry following a thorough survey of the life sciences sector.The four partners that have been are shortlisted are:<ul><li>Stacy Cline Amin – Regulatory Attorney of the Year: FDA Pharmaceutical</li><li>Kira Davis – General Patent Litigator of the Year – California</li><li>Deanne Maynard – Appellate Litigator of the Year – Intellectual Property</li><li>Janet Xiao – Patent Strategy Attorney of the Year – California</li></ul>MoFo’s Life Sciences Group leads the legal field in representing groundbreaking innovators at the cutting-edge of the life sciences industry. Among the team’s clients are some of the leading names in the biotechnology, pharmaceutical, and healthcare industries, including nearly half of the top 20 pharmaceutical companies in the world, and some of the fastest growing companies at the intersection of life sciences and data analytics. The team has a deep understanding of the business of the life science industry, and with 100+ advanced scientific and engineering degrees, including 80+ Ph.D.s in life sciences and related engineering disciplines, the team excels at bridging the gap between law and science. MoFo’s leading position lies in the diversity of our industry practice and scientific experience, cutting across nearly every practice group, including corporate, intellectual property, FDA regulatory, privacy, transactions, licensing, and litigation. MoFo works with innovators at every phase of their growth cycle, from conception to commercialization and exit, vigilantly protecting and enforcing our client’s rights in a competitive market.LMG Life Sciences is the only legal ranking directory to identify the leading law firms and individuals in each practice area of the life sciences industry through deep analysis of the business and legal developments in the sector. MoFo lawyers have consistently been recognized by LMG as leaders in Life Sciences. Stacy Cline Amin was previously shortlisted as Regulatory Attorney of the Year: FDA Pharmaceutical in 2022 and 2023, and was named the winner in 2023. Additionally, this marks the fourth consecutive year that Deanne Maynard has been shortlisted as Appellate Litigator of the Year – Intellectual Property, with a previous win in 2019. Finally, Stacy and Deanne, along with Kira Davis and Janet Xiao, were recognized as Life Sciences Stars in the 2023 edition of LMG Life Sciences.The honorees will be announced at the annual awards event in New York City on September 5, 2024.View the <a href="https://www.managingip.com/pdf/lmg-life-sciences-americas-awards-2024-shortlist-announced-pdf-pdf" target="_blank">full list</a>.

Four Morrison Foerster Partners Shortlisted in LMG Life Sciences Americas Awards

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Kira is an experienced courtroom lawyer who assists life sciences companies in high-stakes patent litigation.Kira is the head of Morrison Foerster’s Los Angeles Litigation Department, a partner in the IP Litigation Group, and a member of the firm-wide Life Sciences + Healthcare Leadership Team. She regularly serves as counsel in intellectual property lawsuits involving cutting-edge technology, including foundational antibody technology, antibody cancer immunotherapies, fusion proteins, small-molecule therapeutics, transcatheter heart valve repair and replacement devices, and genetic testing and genomics technology. Kira litigates on behalf of both patentees and defendants and has significant experience representing innovators in disputes arising out of proposed generic and biosimilar launches.    Kira has been recognized by a number of regional and national publications, including as a Litigator of the Week by The American Lawyer. In 2023, she was named a Top Healthcare Lawyer by the Daily Journal.   Kira’s approach is to gain a deep understanding not only of the technology at issue, but also of her clients’ business objectives and goals, and to work closely with her clients to build litigation and pre-litigation strategies that match those goals. As a trial lawyer, Kira is known for her levelheaded and trustworthy style, allowing client witnesses to shine through on direct examination and cutting through the noise on cross-examination.In addition to U.S. district court litigation, Kira regularly advises clients on proceedings before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, both in matters with co-pending litigation and in stand-alone PTAB proceedings. She also often coordinates global patent litigation strategy across multiple jurisdictions, including England, Ireland, Germany, and Switzerland.Kira also has experience representing clients in connection with other types of litigation and investigative matters, including antitrust litigation, contract disputes, white-collar criminal matters, complex commercial disputes, sports-related matters, and internal investigations.Kira began her legal career as a law clerk to the Honorable John M. Rogers in the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Prior to joining the firm, Kira was a partner at Durie Tangri, a premier litigation boutique. Kira has been active in several professional societies, including LAIPLA’s Women in IP Committee. She currently serves as a board member for The Morrison Foerster Foundation.Kira received her J.D. summa cum laude from Cornell Law School. She received her B.A. in classics from Ohio Wesleyan University.She is admitted to practice in California and New York.

Kira Davis

Partner

Deanne Maynard, co-chair of Morrison Foerster’s Appellate and Supreme Court practice, is widely recognized as one of the nation’s leading appellate advocates. She has argued 14 cases before the United States Supreme Court and 75 times in appellate courts across the country.In ranking Deanne in Band 1, Chambers USA reports that she is described as a “magnificent and top-notch lawyer” who is “wicked smart.” She is “extremely thoughtful, even-keeled and has a wonderful presence in the courtroom." Legal 500 calls Deanne “one of the finest advocates in the Supreme Court bar,” remarking that “if she is on your team, great. If she’s on the other side, be ready.”Deanne’s winning Supreme Court arguments involve a wide range of issues and industries, including life sciences (Sandoz v. Amgen), intellectual property (MedImmune v. Genentech), antitrust (Pacific Bell v. linkLine), financial services (Ransom v. FIA Card Services), and bankruptcy (RadLAX v. Amalgamated Bank). In Sandoz v. Amgen, the Supreme Court ruled for her client in a closely watched case involving the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act, which provides an approval path for biosimilars. Law360 named Deanne to its exclusive list of <a href="http://media2.mofo.com/documents/171212-mvp-deanne-maynard.pdf">Appellate MVPs</a> for this “big victory,” dubbing her a “Legal Lion” three separate times for her work on appeals in this case. LMG Life Sciences also named Deanne <a href="https://www.mofo.com/resources/news/190920-deanne-maynard-appellate-litigator-of-the-year.html">Appellate Litigator of the Year</a>.Deanne argues complex, high stakes cases in courts of appeals nationwide. Clients turn to Deanne for crisp, clear briefs and exceptional oral advocacy. Her appellate wins run a gamut of issues from arbitration to antitrust, class actions to contracts, copyright to Commerce Clause, infringement to invalidity, and securities law to statutory interpretation. Clients praise her as “an incredible oral advocate, very prepared and formidable” (Chambers USA), and “a tireless advocate with sterling client skills” (Legal 500).Deanne has particular experience in the Federal and Ninth Circuits. She has argued more than 40 appeals in the Federal Circuit, including wins for both patentees and defendants on a wide range of technologies. Chambers USA ranked Deanne in Band 1 for Intellectual Property Appeals, describing her as “renowned for her track record in bet-the-company disputes.” She also serves as Chair of the Federal Circuit’s Advisory Council, which is a conduit between the Court and the public. In the Ninth Circuit, her many wins include a decision from the en banc Court holding large parts of a California statute unconstitutional as well as a panel decision vacating a $60 million jury verdict.Deanne is annually recommended as a leading lawyer by Chambers USA, Chambers Global, Legal 500 US, and Best Lawyers in America. She is President-Elect of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers, an invitation-only organization recognizing distinguished appellate lawyers. Deanne also serves on the Board of Trustees of the U.S. Supreme Court Historical Society and is a Master in, and Past President of, the Coke Appellate Inn of Court.Deanne is a leader within Morrison Foerster as well, chairing its partner compensation committee and serving on the firm’s leadership team.Before joining the firm, Deanne served as an Assistant to the Solicitor General at the U.S. Department of Justice for five years. She previously was a partner at another major law firm.After law school, Deanne clerked two terms on the United States Supreme Court, one for Justice Stephen Breyer and another for Justice Lewis Powell (Ret.) and Justice John Paul Stevens. Before that, Deanne clerked two years for Judge Stanley Harris on the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.Deanne graduated magna cum laude from Harvard Law School, where she was an editor of the Harvard Law Review. She earned a B.A. in English, with distinction, from the University of Virginia.<h4 dir="ltr">Supreme Court Arguments</h4><ul dir="ltr"><li>Sandoz v. Amgen <a href="/resources/video-audio/170426-sandoz-v-amgen" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Involving the Supreme Court’s first foray into the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act</li><li>RadLAX v. Amalgamated Bank <a href="/resources/video-audio/120423-radlax-v-amalgamated-bank" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Whether a debtor can sell a secured asset free and clear without permitting the lienholder to credit-bid</li><li>Pacific Bell v. linkLine <a href="/resources/video-audio/081208-pacific-bell-v-linkline" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Whether Section 2 of the Sherman Antitrust Act permits a price squeeze claim in the absence of a duty to deal</li><li>MedImmune v. Genentech <a href="/resources/video-audio/061004-medimmune-v-genentech" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Whether a patent licensee must breach a license agreement before seeking a declaration of patent invalidity</li><li>Ransom v. FIA Card Services <a href="/resources/video-audio/101004-ransom-v-fia-card-services" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Involving when a debtor without lease payments may take a car-ownership deduction</li><li>EC Term of Years Trust v. U.S. Whether the federal tax code relegates a trust to a wrongful levy action as its exclusive remedy</li><li>Marshall v. Marshall Involving the scope of the probate exception to federal jurisdiction</li><li>U.S. v. Olson Involving the federal government’s sovereign immunity under the Federal Tort Claims Act</li><li>Wilkinson v. Austin Whether the procedures governing placement of prisoners in supermax prison satisfied due process</li><li>Greenlaw v. U.S. Involving the power of the court of appeals in the absence of a cross-appeal</li><li>Dean v. U.S. Whether the accidental discharge of a firearm during a robbery results in a mandatory minimum prison term</li><li>Carcieri v. Salazar Involving the Secretary of the Interior’s authority to take land into trust for Indians</li><li>Boulware v. U.S. Whether a profitless corporation’s diversion of funds to a shareholder was nontaxable</li><li dir="ltr">Watson v. U.S. Whether trading drugs for a firearm was “using” a firearm “during and in relation” to a drug trafficking crime</li></ul><h4 dir="ltr">Representative Appellate Arguments</h4><ul dir="ltr"><li>In re Cirba (Fed. Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/210903-in-re-cirba" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Successfully defeated attempt to revive a jury’s patent infringement verdict against VMware</li><li>Phigenix v. Genentech (Fed. Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/170426-phigenix-v-genentech" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Secured noninfringement judgment for Genentech</li><li>Zabriskie v. Fannie Mae  (9th Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/181018-zabriskie-v-fannie-mae" target="_self">(video)</a> Won reversal for Fannie Mae of a Fair Credit Reporting Act judgment</li><li>Washington University v. Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (3d Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/161108-washington-university-v-wisconsin-alumni" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Obtained reversal for Washington University in suit for royalties due under contract with WARF</li><li>Nevro v. Boston Scientific (Fed. Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/191202-nevro-v-boston-scientific" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Won reversal of district court judgment of invalidity for indefiniteness</li><li>National Business Aviation Assoc. v. Huerta (D.C. Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/180514-aviation-v-huerta" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Successfully defended the City of Santa Monica against a challenge to its settlement with the FAA about its municipal airport</li><li>C.R. Bard v. Angiodynamics (Fed. Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/200601-cr-bard-v-angiodynamics" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Won reversal of district court judgment of noninfringement, no willfulness, and invalidity, reviving client’s infringement case on three patents</li><li>Flores v. UPS & Pocino Foods v. UPS (Consolidated) (9th Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/190409-flores-v-ups" target="_self">(video)</a> Secured judgment for UPS on two putative RICO and breach-of-contract class actions about its Next Day Air services</li><li>Residential Capital v. Federal Housing Finance Agency (2d Cir.) Successfully obtained a remand in a case stemming from the ResCap bankruptcy</li><li>BASF v. Johnson Matthey (Fed. Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/171005-basf-argument" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Won reversal of an invalidity ruling against patentee BASF, reviving its patent claims</li><li>Holl v. U.S. District Court (9th Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/190419-holl-v-us-district-court" target="_self">(video)</a> Defeated a mandamus petition against UPS, successfully defending its arbitration provision containing a class-action waiver</li><li>Interactive Digital Software Association v. St. Louis County, Missouri (8th Cir.) Successfully argued a First Amendment challenge to an ordinance regulating video games</li><li>In Re: Tremont Securities Law (2d Cir.) Secured dismissal for a major accounting firm of a putative class action regarding a Madoff-related fund</li><li>Estate of Graham v. Sotheby’s (9th Cir.) (en banc) <a href="/resources/video-audio/141216-estate-of-graham-v-sothebys" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Won invalidation under the Commerce Clause of parts of a California artist resale royalty law</li><li>In re ATM Fee Antitrust Litigation (9th Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/111206-atm-fee-antitrust-litigation" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Prevailed in a putative nationwide antitrust class action against one of the largest U.S. ATM networks</li><li>Augme Technologies v. Yahoo! (Fed. Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/131205-augme-technologies-v-yahoo" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Secured a noninfringement judgment for Yahoo! in a suit involving Internet display advertising</li><li>Lower Elwha Klallam Indian Tribe v. Lummi Nation (9th Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/170830-lummi-nation-argument" target="_self">(video)</a> Won a reversal for the Lummi Nation, reclaiming its historic treaty rights</li><li>Warsaw Orthopedic v. NuVasive (Fed. Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/141201-warsaw-orthopedic-v-nuvasive" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Obtained vacatur of a jury’s $101 million patent damages award</li><li>Momenta v. Amphastar (Fed. Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/150504-momenta-v-amphastar" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Successfully argued for a patentee that conduct was unprotected by the Hatch-Waxman Act safe harbor</li><li dir="ltr">Neurovision Medical Products v. NuVasive (9th Cir.) <a href="/resources/video-audio/120605-neurovision-medical-products-v-nuvasive" target="_self">(audio recording)</a> Obtained vacatur of a jury’s $60 million trademark verdict</li></ul>

Deanne E. Maynard

Janet focuses her practice on worldwide patent procurement, patent portfolio management, and strategic planning for life sciences companies. Janet’s clients range from large multinational biopharmaceutical companies, such as Celgene and Genentech, to emerging startup companies around the world. She advises her clients on patent matters relating to various technologies, including antibody therapeutics, cell therapeutics, nanomedicine, gene therapy, drug delivery systems, diagnostics, and nutraceuticals.Recognized by Chambers as being highly sought after for patent prosecution and strategy mandates by innovators from around the world, Janet develops and strengthens her clients’ complex patent portfolios to maximize their commercial value. She is instrumental in developing strategies for multibillion-dollar patent portfolios for pharmaceutical clients. As impressed clients noted to Chambers, “Janet’s work is thorough, polished and always of the highest caliber. She is well equipped to advise international clients on patent prosecution and strategy in the biotech industry, drawing on substantial technical knowledge.”Janet works extensively in performing IP due diligence reviews in the contexts of VC investments, technology transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and marketing and manufacturing clearance for biopharmaceutical products. She helps some of the world’s most-sophisticated biopharmaceutical companies and investors assess potential risks and devise preemptive risk-management strategies for their product development and investments. She has led hundreds of IP due diligence projects, and is noted for her in-depth knowledge of patent landscapes in the fields of cancer immunotherapy, gene editing, next-generation sequencing, liquid biopsy, antibody manufacturing, and medical devices. Janet works regularly with patent litigators in the event of legal challenges by third-party competitors or vice versa, and she is frequently called upon to represent clients in litigation and post-grant proceedings.Janet is the Head of firm’s China Life Sciences Group and served as co-chair of the global Life Sciences Group from 2016 to 2019. She is among the very few IP attorneys in the world who are both equipped with solid skills in global strategic IP management and knowledgeable about IP issues unique to China and Chinese clients, and she has been the go-to counsel for IP issues in U.S./China cross-border transactions and operations in China. Chambers Global praises her as an outstanding IP lawyer “who is renowned for her work on IP issues concerning complex cross-border transactions, where she regularly advises Chinese clients.” In a recent edition of Chambers Global, a client says, “Janet . . . is very experienced in advising life sciences clients doing business in China and the US . . . She is highly responsive and always gives practical advice. Her IP expertise adds tremendous value to our business.”Since 2005, Janet has been actively involved in the leadership team of the Chinese-American Biopharmaceutical Society (CABS), a nonprofit organization dedicated to bridging the life sciences communities in the U.S. and China, including serving as president for the 2011–2012 term. She is also a member of BayHelix, a nonprofit organization of Chinese heritage leaders in the global life sciences and healthcare fields.

肖荐（Janet Xiao）博士的业务侧重于为生命科学公司处理在全球范围内的专利采购、专利组合管理和战略策划事宜。肖博士服务的客户范围广泛，包括大型跨国生物制药公司，例如赛尔基因公司（Celgene）和基因泰克公司（Genentech），也包括全球范围的新兴创业公司。她经常就与各种技术有关的专利事宜向客户提供法律意见，其中涉及的技术包括抗体疗法、细胞疗法、纳米医学、基因疗法、给药系统、诊断和和营养学等。来自全球的创新者纷纷向肖博士寻求专利申请和专利战略的法律咨询，这一点也得到了《钱伯斯指南》的认可。她帮助客户开发和加强其复杂的专利组合，从而为客户实现最大的商业价值。在为制药行业的客户制定数十亿美元专利组合的战略方面，肖博士发挥着重要的作用。《钱伯斯指南》曾引用客户评价称，“肖博士是我曾合作过的律师当中知识最渊博、效率最高的一位律师。她能很好地将专利组合的历史信息用于全球专利申请问题上。”肖博士针对风险投资、技术交易、并购和生物医药产品的市场推广与生产许可事宜开展广泛的知识产权尽职调查审查工作。她协助世界上一些最成功的生物制药公司和投资者，为其产品开发和投资评估潜在风险，并制定先发制人的风险管理策略。她曾牵头处理过数百个知识产权尽职调查项目，并凭借自己对癌症免疫治疗、基因编辑、新一代测序、液体活检、抗体制造和医疗设备领域的专利方面的深厚知识而闻名。肖博士时常与专利诉讼律师合作，处理由第三方竞争者提出的法律质疑，或对第三方竞争者提出的法律质疑，她还经常受聘代表客户处理专利诉讼和授予后程序。肖博士是美富中国生命科学业务组主管，她曾在2016至2019期间担任美富全球生命科学业务组的联席主管。肖博士是全球为数不多的既拥有很强的全球战略性知识产权管理技能，同时又对中国和中国客户独特的知识产权问题具有深刻理解的知识产权律师之一，她一直是处理中美跨境交易和在中国境内经营中所涉知识产权问题的首选律师。《钱伯斯全球指南》称赞她是一位优秀的知识产权律师，“她因处理与复杂跨境交易有关的知识产权问题工作而知名，经常代表中国客户处理这方面的事宜” 。在近期一版《钱伯斯全球指南》中，某客户评价称，“肖博士在为于中国和美国开展业务的生命科学客户提供法律意见方面，有非常丰富的经验。她非常负责而且总是提供切实可行的法律意见。她在知识产权方面的专业意见为我们的业务增添了巨大价值。”自2005年以来，肖博士一直积极参与北美华人生物医药协会（CABS）的领导工作。该协会是一家非营利组织，致力于成为连接中美两国生命科学领域的纽带。肖博士在2011至2012年间担任该协会主席。她还是百华协会（BayHelix）的成员。百华协会是一家非营利组织，由全球生命科技和医疗保健产业领域的华人精英组成。

Janet Xiao

Life Sciences + Healthcare

Life Sciences Transactions + Licensing