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Morrison Foerster Achieves Top-Tier Recognition in Managing IP’s 2024 Rankings

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Morrison Foerster has once again been named a leading law firm by Managing IP in its 2024 rankings, including 15 practice area rankings and 56 individual recognitions across the United States, Europe and Asia. 

About Morrison Foerster

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Morrison Foerster has once again been named a leading law firm by Managing IP in its 2024 rankings, including 15 practice area rankings and 56 individual recognitions across the United States, Europe and Asia. Managing IP identifies leading law firms and practitioners through a combination of market research and firm submissions.Of the 15 practice area rankings, the firm notably earned Tier 1 recognitions in the Japan: Patent and United States: Copyright & related rights categories, as well as an improved Tier ranking for United States: Patent prosecution, and a new ranking for United States: Trademark disputes. MoFo also earned Tier rankings in the United States: IP Transactions, ITC Litigation, Life Sciences IP, and Patent disputes categories, in addition to being highlighted as a “Highly Recommended” firm across various practices in California, and a “Recommended” firm in the District of Columbia and Japan. These varied, top-tier rankings reflect the firm’s expertise throughout the IP process and across international borders.Twenty MoFo lawyers were recognized as IP Stars, including:<ul><li>Jonathan Bockman – Patent star</li><li>Kira Davis – Patent star</li><li>Bindu Donovan – Patent star</li><li>Daralyn Durie – Copyright, Patent, and Trademark star</li><li>Arturo González – Patent and Trademark star</li><li>Joseph Gratz – Copyright and Trademark star</li><li>Steven James – Trademark star</li><li>Todd Krause – Patent star</li><li>Scott Llewellyn – Patent star</li><li>Brian Matsui – Patent star</li><li>Deanne Maynard – Patent star</li><li>Brian Nash – Patent star</li><li>Max Olson – Patent star</li><li>Catherine Polizzi – Patent star</li><li>Shannon Reaney – Patent Star</li><li>William Schwartz – Transactions star</li><li>Stephanie Sharron – Trademark and Transactions star</li><li>Ragesh Tangri – Copyright, Patent, and Trademark star</li><li>Michael Ward – Patent star</li><li>Chie Yakura – Patent star</li></ul>Additionally, partners Bindu Donovan and Catherine Polizzi have been listed among Managing IP’s Top 250 Women in IP; of counsel Ruth Arkley has been named Notable IP practitioner; and partner Lily Li has been recognized as Rising star.To view the complete list of Morrison Foerster’s rankings in the 2024 edition of Managing IP, please visit the publication’s <a href="https://www.ipstars.com/" target="_blank">website</a>.

Morrison Foerster Achieves Top-Tier Recognition in Managing IP’s 2024 Rankings

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Jon Bockman is the head of the firm’s Technology Patent Practice. In this capacity, he leads the firm’s prominent group of patent practitioners with degrees in electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, computer science, computer engineering, chemical engineering, biomedical engineering and physics. His team handles work in all technology areas including medical devices, AI and machine learning, cybersecurity, computer hardware, advanced materials, and robotics. His practice concentrates on domestic and international patent prosecution, portfolio management, IP due diligence, patent infringement and validity determinations, and IP litigation support. His clients range from some of the largest domestic and international companies to early-stage startups.As lead patent prosecution counsel for several large and emerging companies, Jon has helped clients set up patent departments and committees for building and maintaining strategic patent portfolios. Clients note to IAM Patent 1000 that “[Jon] provides expert legal advice that is clear, understandable and tailored to the needs of the specific client. He is very responsive and is always available when you need him.”Jon has extensive experience helping clients navigate IP concerns including freedom-to-operate and potential litigation issues. Jon is also experienced with leading patent due diligence projects related to investments and mergers and acquisitions. He often leads investor-side and company-side patent due diligence reviews related to these transactions.Jon is a member of the firm’s Inter Partes Review and Post Grant Practice. In this capacity, he handles inter partes review and post-grant review proceedings that were introduced by the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act. He has also handled many disputes for clients in front of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), including inter partes reexaminations, ex parte reexaminations, and derivation proceedings.Jon is recognized as an IP Star by Managing Intellectual Property and as a leading patent practitioner by IAM Patent 1000. He is also recommended by The Legal 500 US for patent prosecution. While earning his J.D., Jon was the associate editor of the University of Colorado Law Review.

Jonathan Bockman

Partner

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

Bindu Donovan has been litigating high-stakes intellectual property disputes in the life sciences field for over 25 years.Bindu, a seasoned partner in Morrison Foerster’s Intellectual Property Litigation group specializes in patent litigation in U.S. federal district courts. She has a broad range of experience in life sciences, representing clients in matters related to biologic and small-molecule drugs, medical devices, recombinant proteins, and vaccines. Her extensive portfolio extends to representing innovator companies in Hatch-Waxman cases covering treatments for ADHD, diabetes, influenza, hypertension, and metastatic prostate cancer, including blockbuster drugs.Bindu excels in leading large litigation teams in all aspects of complex patent infringement disputes, including pre-suit investigations, pre-trial and expert discovery, trial preparation, and trial. She is adept at coordinating global strategies for her clients’ most important products. Additionally, her experience includes breach of contract and trade secret disputes, mediation, and arbitration.Bindu has been consistently recognized as a leading practitioner in her field. LMG Life Sciences acknowledged her contributions to life sciences-related patent work, and IAM Patent 1000 ranked her as a Leading IP Litigation Lawyer. Additional notable accolades include being named one of the Top 250 Women in Litigation and a Local Litigation Star by Benchmark Litigation. Managing Intellectual Property also named her an “IP Star” and one of the Top 250 Women in IP.Bindu serves on the board of managers of the New Jersey Intellectual Property Law Association (NJIPLA) and participates in various other legal organizations.<h4>Representative Experience</h4><ul><li>Represented international biopharmaceutical company in confidential matter involving offensive and defensive patent assertion strategy concerning vaccines.</li><li>Represented international biopharmaceutical company in confidential pre-suit investigation relating to fusion protein.</li><li>Represented VMI Holland BV in breach of contract action.</li><li>Represented patent holder Johnson & Johnson subsidiary, Actelion Pharmaceuticals Ltd., in patent infringement suits filed under the Hatch-Waxman Act involving pulmonary arterial hypertension drug Tracleer®.</li><li>Represented patent holder Avanos in patent infringement suit involving cooled radiofrequency ablation products.</li><li>Represented patent holder Johnson & Johnson subsidiary, Janssen, in patent infringement suits filed under the Hatch-Waxman Act and inter partes review proceedings involving prostate cancer drug, Zytiga®.</li><li>Represented patent holders Gilead and Roche/Genentech in patent infringement suit filed under the Hatch-Waxman Act involving influenza drug, Tamiflu®.</li><li>Represented patent holders Cordis Corporation and Wyeth in patent infringement suits involving drug eluting stents.</li><li>Represented defendant Johnson & Johnson in patent infringement suit involving sunscreen compositions.</li><li>Represented a pharmaceutical company in a patent infringement lawsuit filed under the Hatch-Waxman Act involving a medication for ADHD.</li><li>Represented patent holder SmithKline Beecham in patent infringement suit filed under the Hatch-Waxman Act involving Type 2 diabetes drug, Avandia®.</li></ul>

Bindu Donovan

Daralyn Durie is among the top trial lawyers in the country, acting as go-to trial counsel for both plaintiffs and defendants. Daralyn’s exceptional track record has earned her consistent recognition from leading national publications. Chambers has listed her among the top 10 intellectual property lawyers in the U.S. and Law360 has recognized her as an “Icon of IP” and an MVP. Benchmark Litigation reported that “going against her was like going against a boxer in which you know you’re going to get hurt.” She’s a fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers, a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates, and an inductee into the California Trial Lawyer Hall of Fame.Daralyn’s legal career began at Berkeley Law, followed by a clerkship for the Honorable Douglas Ginsburg on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. She became a partner at a litigation boutique in 1999 and, in 2009, co-founded Durie Tangri, a premier litigation boutique that later combined with Morrison Foerster in 2023.In addition to her courtroom successes, Daralyn is actively involved in the legal community. She is a board member of the National Women’s Law Center, a past president of the Northern California Association of Business Trial Lawyers, and served as an adjunct professor at Berkeley Law, where she taught civil trial advocacy.Life SciencesDaralyn has decades of experience in the life sciences sector. She spearheaded the enforcement of Genentech’s Cabilly family of patents, which generated billions of dollars in licensing revenue. She served as lead counsel in the Herceptin biosimilar litigation and recently achieved a plaintiff-side jury verdict of $178 million in a patent infringement case involving melanoma therapy.TechnologyIn the tech sector, Daralyn recently won defense jury verdicts for Aptiv (USB hubs), Activision (in the Eastern District of Texas), and Redbubble. She served as lead counsel for Google, defending Google Books from copyright infringement claims. Following extensive litigation on copyright and antitrust issues, Google prevailed on summary judgment, resulting in Daralyn being named an Attorney of the Year by California Lawyer magazine.

Daralyn Durie

<div class="videoWrapper"><iframe title="Meet Arturo González Commercial Litigator" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/jIM9npubu4I?rel=0" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="1" title="iframe"></iframe></div>Arturo is one of the nation’s top trial lawyers. One federal judge said his “trial advocacy skills were superior,” while a federal magistrate described his trial skills as “phenomenal.” He is sought after by America’s largest companies, in part because of his ability to communicate with increasingly diverse juries. Arturo has had great success representing both plaintiffs and defendants. He may be the only lawyer in the country to obtain defense victories for clients in multiple billion dollar matters and also four jury verdicts in excess of $10 million, including verdicts of $39.3 and $13.8 million in trade secrets cases. Arturo is a Fellow with the American College of Trial Lawyers and the International Academy of Trial Lawyers and an associate with the American Board of Trial Advocates.He has served as MoFo’s lead trial counsel in a number of significant matters, including:<ul><li>Waymo v. Uber: Won a favorable settlement after four days of jury trial. Defeated motion for preliminary injunction that sought to bar Uber’s autonomous vehicle program.</li><li>Phoenix Technologies Ltd. v. VMWare, Inc.: Won a defense verdict in copyrights case seeking over $100 million and future royalties.</li><li>Phaedrus v. Kaiser Permanente: Won a defense verdict for Kaiser in a $125 million trade secrets misappropriation and breach of contract case.</li><li>Hansen Medical v. Luna Innovations Inc.: Won a $36.3 million verdict in a trial involving medical robotics. Jury found that defendant willfully misappropriated trade secrets and breached two contracts.</li></ul>Arturo has obtained a number of record jury verdicts, including $12.5 million for the unlawful shooting of a farmworker, $1.45 million for unlawful strip searches, and $63 million in a wrongful death suit.Arturo has earned a wealth of recognition from his peers. In 2021, Arturo joined the California Lawyers Association’s Trial Attorney Hall of Fame, an award bestowed upon attorneys who have excelled as trial lawyers and whose careers exemplify the highest values and professional attainment. He was also honored in 2019, by the American Bar Association for his dedication to providing free legal services to the poor. He was named to Legal 500’s Trial Lawyers Hall of Fame in 2017, has nine consecutive selections to the Daily Journal’s Top 100 Lawyers in California, is recommended by Chambers USA as a top commercial litigator, and has been selected annually since 2010, as one of the country’s top 30 trial lawyers by Legal 500, United States. In 2009, The National Law Journal recognized him as one of the top 10 trial lawyers in the country in their “Winning” Special Report. Earlier in his career, he was selected by National Law Journal as one of the nation’s top 40 lawyers under the age of 40 and one of the “50 Most Influential Minority Lawyers in America.”Arturo served as the 2010 President of the Bar Association of San Francisco.

Arturo J. González

Clients turn to Joe Gratz to handle trailblazing litigation where copyright and trademark law meet new technologies. An experienced litigator, Joe draws on his strong technical background to distill complex issues into simple, accurate concepts for judges, juries, and clients. Joe’s cases have set key precedents in Internet law, from the Google Books case that laid the groundwork for today’s generative AI innovations to key cases establishing the boundaries of intermediary liability. In addition to representing their interests in the courtroom, Joe helps his clients navigate their thorniest product counseling puzzles to reduce the risk of litigation.His appellate victory in Long v. Facebook set the standard for platforms in carrying out DMCA removals of user-generated content. And Joe’s win in Stevens v. CoreLogic established limitations on DMCA 1202 claims that have since been adopted by numerous other courts. His amicus brief on behalf of independent booksellers was cited by the Supreme Court in its opinion in Wiley v. Kirtsaeng, and he has submitted amicus briefs in other copyright cases on behalf of Center for Democracy & Technology (in Oracle v. Google) and on behalf of art law professors (in Warhol v. Goldsmith).A recognized commentator on copyright and internet law, Joe was selected as an advisor for the American Law Institute’s project to develop a Restatement of Copyright, and serves on the Advisory Board of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. He frequently speaks on emerging issues in Internet law and was called upon by the Senate Judiciary Committee in 2020 to testify about the interaction between the DMCA 512 safe harbor and fair use. Joe was the 2022 recipient of the California Lawyers Association’s IP Vanguard award, presented to one private practitioner each year for achievements at the forefront of emerging issues in intellectual property law.

Joseph Gratz

Steven James is a Partner based in the London office of Morrison Foerster. He specialises in intellectual property disputes, and advises on the protection and exploitation of intellectual property, as well as a wide range of commercial matters.Steven practices in intellectual property, technology, and commercial law, with a focus on new technologies and innovation. His experience includes advising clients on both contentious and transactional intellectual property and commercial matters, predominantly in the tech, financial services, life sciences, retail and luxury goods, food & beverage, and media sectors. He advises on the full spectrum of IP rights, including trade marks, passing off, copyright, designs, patents and confidential information. Steven counsels clients on the development of IP and branding strategies and formulates strategic approaches for the licensing and enforcement of intellectual property rights. He also has experience of advising on commercial disputes, defamation and data protection matters.Steven has been recommended for Intellectual Property law and Technology, Media & Telecommunications Law multiple times over many years in the Legal 500 UK. He is described by clients as “an efficient, effective and an excellent, timely communicator … always on hand to provide confident and practical advice. His deep and technical knowledge of IP is unparalleled”. Steven has also been named a Trade Mark Star by Managing Intellectual Property and as a recommended individual by IAM Patent 1000.He has been awarded a Distinction in Intellectual Property Law from the University of Oxford. Steven has conducted matters before the U.K. Intellectual Property Office, the EU Intellectual Property Office, the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court, the High Court and Court of Appeal, and the Court of Justice of the European Union. Steven is a Solicitor-Advocate with rights of audience in all civil proceedings in the higher courts of England and Wales.<h4>Representative Experience</h4><ul><li>Representing Wirex Limited, one of the world’s leading cryptocurrency platforms, in its successful trade mark infringement claim and damages inquiry against Cryptocarbon Global Ltd & Others (Wirex Limited v. Cryptocarbon Global Ltd & Others ([2021] EWHC 617 (IPEC) and [2022] EWHC 1161).</li><li>Novaerus Patents Limited v Quest International (UK) Limited [2016] EWHC 95 (Ch): Represented medical technology provider Novaerus in a summary judgment claim in a complex contractual dispute about the sale of various patents and subsequent cross-licensing.</li><li>Advising World-Leading COVID Rapid Test Provider Excalibur Healthcare Services on a ground-breaking Licence and Development Agreement with Sensyne Health in respect of the use of Excalibur’s lateral flow diagnostic tests with Sensyne Health’s clinical AI software, ‘MagnifEye’.</li><li>Acting for an electrical wholesaler in relation to a passing off claim against a nationwide chain. </li><li>Acting for a software development company on a High Court Technology & Construction Court dispute with a global retail bank.</li><li>Acting for the acquirers of the iconic Crombie coat brand, and advising on its global IP portfolio.</li><li>Acting for an electrical wholesaler on a passing off action against a listed building merchants’ business.</li><li>Acting for an online fashion retail platform in respect of parallel trade mark infringement proceedings in the U.K. and United States.</li><li>Interflora Inc v Marks & Spencer plc (Case C-323/09): Acting for Interflora on a high profile trade mark infringement case relating to the use of keywords on Google’s AdWords program, which was referred to the Court of Justice of the European Union.</li><li>Orion Publishing Group Ltd v Novel Entertainment Ltd [2012] EWHC 1951 (Ch): Acting for a major commercial publisher in relation to a dispute over a royalty verification clause in a publishing agreement.</li></ul>

Steven James

Todd Krause is a partner and member of the firm’s Intellectual Property Litigation Group. Todd has over 25 years of experience successfully litigating patent cases for leading global pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.To help his clients succeed, Todd clearly defines their strategic objectives, develops compelling trial themes early in the case, focuses his teams on issues that truly matter, and distills complex issues down to clear, factfinder-friendly trial arguments. With a Ph.D. in biological sciences and a postdoctoral fellowship in the Department of Molecular and Human Genetics at Baylor College of Medicine, Todd brings a profound understanding of the scientific aspects of his cases.Todd has guided teams in numerous Hatch-Waxman litigations (most involving blockbuster drugs) and a diverse range of matters in the life sciences industry, including small-molecule and biologic drugs, medical devices, gene amplification techniques, cell-based assays, veterinary vaccines, and recombinant nucleic acids and proteins.Recognized as a leading figure in the patent and life sciences legal fields, Todd has earned accolades such as being named as a Hatch-Waxman Patent Litigation Star by LMG Life Sciences; named as an IP Star by Managing Intellectual Property; and recommended by the IAM Patent 1000 and The Legal 500. He remains actively involved in legal organizations, while contributing to the advancement of his clients’ industries.<h4>Representative Experience</h4><ul><li>Represented global biopharmaceutical company in patent litigation related to COVID vaccine.</li><li>Represented multinational biopharmaceutical company in patent litigation related to a treatment for an autoimmune disease.</li><li>Represented global biopharmaceutical company in patent litigation related to a HIV treatment.</li><li>Represented Avanos in patent litigation related to cooled radiofrequency ablation products.</li><li>Represented Johnson & Johnson subsidiary Janssen Biotech, Inc. in Hatch-Waxman patent litigations and inter partes review proceedings related to prostate cancer drug Zytiga®.</li><li>Represented Johnson & Johnson subsidiary Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. in Hatch-Waxman patent litigations related to the blood-thinner Xarelto®.</li><li>Represented international pharmaceutical company in patent litigation related to cancer immunotherapy.</li><li>Represented global biopharmaceutical company in patent litigation involving genetic mutations, recombinant DNA and proteins, and cellular assays related to a brain disorder.</li><li>Represented Johnson & Johnson subsidiary Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in Hatch-Waxman patent litigation related to Nucynta®, a drug for the treatment of pain.</li><li>Represented Forest Laboratories Inc. in multidistrict Hatch-Waxman patent litigations involving the blood pressure reduction agent Bystolic®.</li><li>Represented Sunovion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in Hatch-Waxman patent litigation involving Xopenex HFA®, an inhalation aerosol used to treat the narrowing of airways by asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.</li><li>Represented Schering Corporation and MSP Singapore (both now owned by Merck) in several Hatch-Waxman patent litigations involving the blockbuster cholesterol lowering drugs Vytorin® and Zetia®.</li><li>Represented ConvaTec, Inc. in a patent action involving negative pressure wound healing devices.</li><li>Represented Columbia University professor, Dr. Gertrude Rothschild in patent actions related to methods for making semiconductor materials.</li><li>Represented Mycogen Corp. in patent action arising under 35 U.S.C. §291 of the patent laws that involved genetically modified plants.</li><li>Represented Boehringer Ingelheim in patent litigations related to a veterinary vaccine.</li><li>Represented Hoffmann-La Roche in patent litigation related to the Nobel Prize winning technology Polymerase Chain Reaction (“PCR”) and a polymerase (“Taq”) used in that technology.</li><li>Represented Hoffmann-La Roche and Boehringer Ingelheim in patent litigations related to the use of cell-based assays for drug discovery.</li></ul>

Todd Krause

Scott Llewellyn’s practice focuses on complex litigation in federal and state courts around the country, with an emphasis on patent and trade secret disputes. Over the past decade, he has worked on some of the most significant, high–profile IP cases involving technology for televisions, smartphones, and self–driving cars, relying on 40 years of experience with computer hardware and software. Scott also has significant experience with business divorce cases before courts and arbitrators, involving a mix of trade secret, patent, tort, and contract claims relating to technology development and implementation.Scott also has successfully tried general commercial arbitration and agency matters, briefed and argued various appeals in federal appellate court, and tried more than 20 cases for the Denver City Attorney’s office, most of them jury trials.Scott also has an active pro bono practice, having worked on a variety of criminal and immigration appeals, and having represented Colorado criminal defense and mental health organizations in high–profile suits against the state of Colorado for violations of the constitutional rights of defendants.At MoFo, Scott serves on the board of the Morrison & Foerster Foundation. In the broader legal community, he serves on the boards of the Colorado Lawyers Committee and Drop in the Bucket (a charity that builds wells and sanitation systems in sub–Saharan Africa).After law school, Scott clerked for the Honorable Clarence A. Brimmer, District of Wyoming, and the Honorable Diarmuid F. O’Scannlain, Ninth Circuit. He was also previously an adjunct professor at the Georgetown University Law Center.

Scott F. Llewellyn

Brian Matsui co-chairs Morrison Foerster’s Appellate and Supreme Court practice. Brian is a go-to appellate advocate for sophisticated clients in complex appeals nationwide. Chambers USA reports Brian is a “‘terrific’ practitioner with a ‘warm and enthusiastic’ approach to matters.”Brian has a nationwide appellate practice. He has argued many cases in federal and state appellate courts throughout the country, winning appeals involving federal preemption, securities litigation and enforcement, consumer class actions, and intellectual property. He has led appeals in the D.C., Second, Fourth, Fifth, Ninth, Eleventh, and Federal Circuits. His arguments include significant victories in class action appeals and in appeals for leading financial services companies, with multiple victories in the Ninth Circuit, where he clerked. Brian also argued and won a D.C. Circuit appeal against the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) about the retroactivity of part of the Dodd-Frank Act. As a result of Brian’s win, the SEC had to change its enforcement practices against certain securities industry professionals.Clients turn to Brian for his substantial experience with appeals in the Federal Circuit, praising him as “an invaluable advocate in patent matters” (Chambers USA). Brian has won 12 of his last 13 appeals in that Court, including four reversals. His arguments before the Federal Circuit include winning appeals from district courts, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, and the International Trade Commission. He has handled appeals in a myriad of industries, including mobile devices, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, semiconductors, and software.Brian also plays a key role on trial teams, advising clients on both critical legal issues and appellate preservation. He recently argued and prevailed against a summary judgment invalidity motion in a case involving Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.’s revolutionary antibody recycling technology, which ultimately led to a $775 million settlement on the eve of trial for Chugai.A former law clerk for the United States Supreme Court, Brian has authored many briefs in that Court, including on important constitutional and statutory interpretation issues. He often represents clients’ interests in amicus briefs in significant Supreme Court cases affecting the business community.Leading publications have recognized Brian for his appellate skills. The Legal 500 US recommends him for appellate litigation, and the National Law Journal named Brian a “Minority 40 Under 40.”Brian is an editor of Morrison Foerster’s <a href="https://federalcircuitry.mofo.com/" target="_blank">Federal Circuitry</a> blog, which takes a data-driven approach to analyzing the Federal Circuit and its decisions.Brian also dedicates significant time to pro bono matters. He argued and won two significant appeals—in the Second and Ninth Circuits—obtaining reversals of judgments that had denied private rights of action under the Child Welfare Act in precedential decisions. Brian also led the Morrison Foerster team who co-counseled a successful Eighth Amendment challenge to Florida’s imposition of a “life without the possibility of parole” sentence to a juvenile offender convicted of a non-homicide crime.For years, Brian chaired the ABA’s seven-person Standing Committee for Amicus Curiae Briefs. He served on the American Intellectual Property Law Association’s amicus committee and co-chaired the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association’s amicus committee. Brian served as an appellate lawyer representative for the Ninth Circuit. Brian also serves on the board of directors for the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.Before entering private practice, Brian clerked on the United States Supreme Court for Justice Anthony M. Kennedy. He also clerked for Judge Pamela Ann Rymer in the Ninth Circuit and Judge David F. Levi in the Eastern District of California.While in law school, Brian served as managing editor of Volume 51 of the Stanford Law Review and was elected to the Order of the Coif.<h4>Representative Oral Arguments</h4><ul><li><a href="https://oralarguments.cafc.uscourts.gov/default.aspx?fl=22-1260_02102023.mp3" target="_blank">SNIPR Technologies Ltd. v. Rockefeller University </a>(Fed. Cir.) Prevailed in a precedential decision reversing the Patent Office’s interpretation of the America Invents Act (AIA) that subjected patents post-dating the Act to pre-AIA interference proceedings. The decision revived five of SNIPR’s patents related to CRISPR technology.</li><li><a href="/resources/video-audio/220114-broadcom-corporation-v-renesas-matsui" target="_blank">Renesas Electronics Corporation v. Broadcom Corporation</a> (12:40) (Fed. Cir.) Successfully argued and briefed multiple appeals from an International Trade Commission (ITC) decision and several Patent Trial and Appeal Board decisions related to an ITC investigation initiated by Broadcom involving systems-on-chip powering automobile infotainment systems.</li><li><a href="/resources/video-audio/210706-cr-bard-v-medline-industries" target="_self">C.R. Bard Inc. v. Medline Industries, Inc.</a> (0:45) (Fed. Cir.) Won vacatur of three Patent Trial and Appeal Board decisions on obviousness.</li><li><a href="https://oralarguments.cafc.uscourts.gov/default.aspx?fl=21-1745_03102022.mp3" target="_blank">Advanced Voice Recognition Systems, Inc. v. Apple Inc.</a> (14:30) (Fed. Cir.) Secured a complete victory in appeal from Patent Trial and Appeal Board that all challenged patent claims were unpatentable.</li><li><a href="/resources/video-audio/200515-william-paulus-v-ocera-therapeutics-inc.html" target="_self">William Paulus v. Ocera Therapeutics, Inc.</a> (13:25) (9th Cir.) Successfully argued and briefed appeal in a putative shareholder class action involving a tender offer.</li><li><a href="/resources/video-audio/200410-kurtz-v-costco.html" target="_blank">Kurtz v. Costco Wholesale Corporation </a>(9:23) (2d Cir.) Successfully petitioned for review of a class certification decision, then argued and obtained a remand for the district court to reconsider its certification decision and an eventual reversal on an injunctive class certification decision.</li><li><a href="/resources/video-audio/161117-gregory-bartko-v-sec.html" target="_self">Gregory Bartko v. SEC</a> (0:53) (D.C. Cir.) Successfully argued and obtained precedential ruling that the Securities and Exchange Commission could not retroactively apply Dodd-Frank’s industry-wide sanctions on securities professionals for certain securities violations.</li></ul>

Brian Matsui

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

Brian Nash co-chair's Morrison Foerster’s global IP Litigation Group and cross-disciplinary Intellectual Property Group. He is also the Managing Partner of the firm's Austin office. An established intellectual property trial attorney and a leader in the Western District of Texas, Brian has managed more than 250 cases involving intellectual property and technology in district courts across the nation, before the PTAB, at the ITC, and on appeal in the Federal Circuit, including matters involving patents, trademarks, trade secrets, and copyrights.Clients also turn to Brian for his ability to analyze and simplify highly technical issues through a legal lens. He combines his experience as a registered patent lawyer and his engineering degree to counsel clients in a wide range of technologies, including semiconductors, programmable logic devices, software, blockchain, e-commerce, digital media, video games, virtual reality, wireless standards, aluminum alloy composition, container fabrication, hydrocarbon exploration, search marketing, geolocation, encryption, image processing, and liquid crystal displays.Brian is a recognized, leading practitioner in the Western District of Texas, where he has handled over 80 cases, including over 50 before Judge Albright. He founded the committee to create the Honorable Lee Yeakel IP Inn of Court, the first IP-focused Inn of Court in Texas, and he currently serves as president. Further, Brian is a board member and past president for the Austin Chapter of the Federal Bar Association, and is a past president of the Austin Intellectual Property Law Association.Brian served as a judicial law clerk for the Honorable Richard Linn of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington, D.C.<h4>Representative Experience</h4><ul><li>Won a dispositive claim construction ruling that resulted in a dismissal following a Markman hearing before Judge Albright on behalf of a Fortune 50 semiconductor company on a patent related to field programmable gate arrays.</li><li>Won a final written decision holding all claims unpatentable and denying patent owner’s motion to amend in an inter partes review for a Fortune 50 semiconductor company on a patent related to field programmable gate arrays.</li><li>Representing Cimarex Energy Co. in defending against a multi-patent case involving e-fracking technologies.</li><li>Advising Anheuser-Busch in an instituted derivation proceeding related to aluminum alloy composition technology that is pending at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board.</li></ul>

Brian Nash

Max Olson is a partner in the firm’s Intellectual Property Group and Litigation Department. Max’s practice includes all aspects of dispute resolution with special emphasis on patent litigation, international arbitration, trade secret litigation, sports litigation, and adversarial patent license negotiations. Max served as the chair of the Tokyo office Litigation Department from 2006 to 2013, and managing partner of the Los Angeles office from 2004 through 2006.Max recently led the firm’s patent litigation teams on behalf of JOLED Inc. in the global enforcement of its OLED display patents against Samsung’s Galaxy phones through parallel litigation in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas (Case No. 6:20-cv-559) and the Japan Customs Office. Max also led the firm’s patent litigation teams defending infringement actions brought by Samsung Display and/or its affiliate, Intellectual Keystone Technology, against JOLED and its customers, including ASUSTeK Computer Inc. and ASUS Computer Int’l, in ITC Investigation No. 337-TA-1257 (In re Certain Organic Light-Emitting Diode Displays, Components Thereof, and Products Containing Same) and in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas (Case Nos. 6:21-cv-00017 and 6:21-cv-00053).Max led the firm’s litigation and arbitration teams on behalf of Fujitsu Semiconductor Limited (“FSL”) in a global dispute with Cypress Semiconductor over the intellectual property rights in and ownership of thousands of photomasks used in the manufacture of semiconductors. Max defeated Cypress’s motion for injunctive relief in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in a significant victory for FSL (Cypress Semiconductor Corp. v. FSL, 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 32907 (N.D. Cal. Feb. 25, 2020)) and, filed counterclaims against Cypress in an arbitration before the Japan Commercial Arbitration Association.Max represented Mitsui Chemicals in trade secret litigation involving irrigation systems in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida which included a successful motion by Max to dismiss the unfair trade practices, unfair competition, fraud, and conspiracy claims (Developmental Techs. LLC v. Mitsui Chems., Inc., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 64630 (M.D. Fla. Apr. 15, 2019)).Max represented U.S. Olympic gymnast Paul Hamm before the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland, the world’s highest court for resolving sports disputes, in the highly publicized dispute over the gold medal in the men’s individual all-around event in the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. A panel of three CAS arbitrators rejected the appeal filed by the bronze medalist, Korean gymnast Yang Tae Young, and held unanimously that Mr. Hamm should keep his gold medal. Max also led the firm’s arbitration team on behalf of a mixed martial arts fighter and obtained an award from the Japan Commercial Arbitration Association releasing the fighter from an unfavorable contract with his promoter.Max has also represented Fujitsu, FSL, Socionext, Konica Minolta, TDK, Yamaha, Micron Memory Japan, Advantest, Sega, and other major corporations in various adversarial patent license negotiations against some of the world’s largest patent holders.Max is currently serving as the President of The Tokyo IP American Inn of Court for 2021-22. He is also a registered gaikokuho-jimu-bengoshi and a member of the Daini Tokyo Bar Association, the Litigation Section and Intellectual Property Law Section of the American Bar Association, and the American Intellectual Property Law Association.Max received his M.A. and B.A., magna cum laude, from Harvard University and his J.D., cum laude, from the University of Michigan.

Max Olson

Intellectual versatility combined with incisive, pragmatic counseling and business acumen is the hallmark of Catherine’s practice.Catherine helps emerging and established companies through the challenging process of obtaining patents, and provides strategic, effective portfolio counseling and management, as well as strategic advice surrounding freedom of operation and other forms of IP assessment. She develops valuable, strategic portfolios around breakthrough therapies in a variety of areas including cancer, cancer immunotherapy, autoimmune diseases, inflammatory diseases, infectious diseases, cardiovascular diseases, metabolic disorders, and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease.She also has significant experience in a wide spectrum of technology areas, including biologics (such as antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates (ADC), and polypeptides), nucleic acids, precision medicine, diagnostics, cell therapy including T cell technologies, such as chimeric antigen receptors, drug formulation technologies, drug delivery technologies, such as nanotechnologies, microfluidics, drug screening systems, AI solutions for life sciences including discovery platforms, amplification technologies, genetic screening, sequencing technologies including next generation sequencing, regenerative medicine, nutraceuticals, spectroscopy, and organic chemistry, including small molecule drugs.Catherine’s unique background, ability to integrate IP with a given business model to translate into meaningful valuation, risk assessment and advice, and highly effective communication skills in critical settings such as R&D, all phases of product development, and investment contexts, enable her to provide effective, creative solutions to the significant challenges often faced by clients. Catherine is an acquisition and value enhancement driver as well, a critical conduit for companies as they grow from startup through IPO, exit, and beyond.IP Leadership for Transactions, Financings, and Acquisitions. Catherine’s practice also includes due diligence evaluation and counseling in the context of venture investment assessments and in connection with public and private financing, spin-offs, partnerships, and mergers and acquisitions, where her IP strategies have helped drive the value of multibillion dollar deals.Representative transactions resulting from Catherine’s leadership include:<ul><li>The $74 billion acquisition by Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) of Celgene Corporation, the largest pharmaceutical-company acquisition ever to date.</li><li>Celgene Corporation’s $9 billion acquisition of client Juno Therapeutics and earlier $2.9 billion acquisition of client Abraxis BioScience.</li><li>The $2.6 billion acquisition of Nestle Health Science of client Aimmune Therapeutics.</li><li>The up to $1.1 billion development collaboration with Bristol Myers Squibb on behalf of Volastra Therapeutics, which was recognized as one of the most promising early-stage biotechnology companies in the industry by Fierce Biotech’s 2022 Fierce 15, to discover, develop, and commercialize new oncology medicines.</li><li>Dewpoint Therapeutics’ $239 million collaboration with Pfizer for the development of new treatments for a rare kind of muscular dystrophy, the $305 million collaboration with Merck on a novel approach for the treatment of HIV, and the up to $100 million partnership with Bayer to research new treatments for cardiovascular and gynecological diseases.</li><li>SQZ Biotechnologies’ $125 million partnership with Roche to work on antigen-presenting cells designed to trigger killer T cell attacks against tumors.</li><li>Frontier Medicines’ $55 million collaboration with AbbVie to develop molecules against hard-to-drug targets.</li><li>Myriad Genetics’ $375 million acquisition of Counsyl, Inc.</li><li>Turnstone Biologics’ acquisition of Myst Therapeutics.</li><li>The $14 billion acquisition by Pfizer of client Medivation, as well as the previous $225 million Pfizer investment in Medivation.</li></ul>Catherine was retained by BMS, Pfizer, Celgene, and Juno (following the acquisitions of both by BMS) for ongoing patent strategy and counseling work on the existing patent portfolios and with expanded representation of the parent companies following these acquisitions. Other representative transactions where her astute leadership has proved invaluable include:<ul><li>Johnson & Johnson’s acquisition of TARIS Biomedical, with a focus on transforming the treatment of bladder cancer.</li><li>Frontier Medicines’ Series A Preferred Stock financing of $67 million. </li><li>SQZ Biotech’s $65 million Series D financing.</li><li>Dewpoint Therapeutics’ $150 million Series C financing, $77 million Series B financing and $60 million Series A financing.</li><li>Lyndra Therapeutics’ $55 million Series B financing.</li><li>Alpine Immune Sciences’ $48 million Series A financing and subsequent $90 million merger with Nivalis Therapeutics, resulting in a publicly traded company.</li><li>Indapta Therapeutics’ $50 million Series A financing.</li><li>Cartography Biosciences' $57 million Series A financing.</li></ul>Strategist in Legal Challenges and a Key Member of Litigation Teams. In addition to helping create value and commercialize her clients’ technologies, Catherine devises strategies and defenses to fortify their patents in the event of legal challenges by competitors. Accordingly, she renders advice on all aspects of patent positioning, including opinions on patentability, validity, freedom of operation, infringement, and competitor IP evaluation. She also works in the area of third–party challenges, such as inter partes review (IPR) and oppositions.A Recognized Leader. From 2006 through 2009, Catherine served as the chair of the firm’s Patent Prosecution & Counseling Group and co-chair of the firm’s Intellectual Property Group. Chambers USA noted that Catherine “maintains a strong reputation for her capabilities advising biotechnology clients on portfolio management and other IP matters,” while clients note that she is “a great strategic thinker, great at flagging the high–level questions and brings a good business perspective,” and praise her for “bring[ing] a good business perspective to IP efforts which is not always evident with other IP attorneys.” Catherine has also received the following awards and accolades:<ul><li>Selected as US Practitioner of the Year for Patent Prosecution by Managing Intellectual Property in 2024</li></ul><ul><li>Recognized as a Best Lawyer in Biotechnology and Life Sciences by Best Lawyers for 2023 and 2024</li><li>Inducted to the Legal Media Group Life Sciences Hall of Fame in 2018</li><li>Ranked by Chambers Global 2021-2023 in Life Sciences: IP/Patent Litigation</li><li>Ranked by Chambers USA 2013–2023 in Life Sciences: IP/Patent Litigation and Intellectual Property: Patent Prosecution 2018-2023</li><li>Selected as one of the Top 100 Intellectual Property Lawyers in California by the Daily Journal for 2009–2022</li><li>Recommended as a leading lawyer by Legal 500 U.S. for 2012–2023</li><li>Managing Intellectual Property – Top 250 Women in IP (2013, 2014, 2018-2022, 2024) and Patent Star (2018-2024)</li><li>Recognized as a Life Sciences Star by Legal Media Group Life Sciences for 2012–2022 and selected as the Legal Media Group Life Sciences 2017 Patent Strategy & Management Attorney of the Year for California</li><li>Named to The Recorder’s 2013, 2015, 2016, and 2017 Women Leaders in Tech Law list for demonstrating leadership and expertise in solving the most pressing legal concerns tech companies can face</li><li>Recognized in the IAM Patent 1000 – The World’s Leading Patent Practitioners 2014–2017, 2021-2023</li><li>Named to the 2012–2018 Northern California Super Lawyers list and in the Super Lawyers Women’s edition (2016-2018)</li><li>Recognized in the Lawyers to the Innovators section of the 2013 edition of the Financial Times U.S. Innovative Lawyers report</li><li>Selected as one of the 100 most influential women in Silicon Valley for 2013 by the Silicon Valley Business Journal</li><li>Recognized as a leader by Euromoney Legal Media Group and received its 2013 Americas Women in Business Law Award for best in life sciences</li></ul><h4>Select Representations</h4>Catherine is patent counsel to numerous publicly traded and privately held companies, with many new client relationships resulting from her strong reputation in the life sciences industry. A selection of her representative matters include the following:<ul><li>Genentech, the world’s first and most successful biotechnology company, relies on Catherine’s strategic patent counseling and prosecution services for its most difficult and challenging patent matters. Her work involves developing overall patent strategy, patent application drafting, and prosecution for key technologies. Her high–value work for Genentech also includes strategic assessment of key and novel technologies, as well as inter partes review and patent litigation support and advisement.</li><li>Juno Therapeutics has continuously relied on Catherine for patent strategy and prosecution. Juno is one of the best–funded start–ups in biotechnology history. It went on to become a publicly traded company in 2014 and ultimately was acquired by Celgene in 2018 for $9 billion; the strength of the patent portfolio that Catherine crafted helped drive the valuation for the deal. She led the IP team on the acquisition.</li><li>Celgene calls on Catherine for its patent strategy, drafting, and IP due diligence matters. She worked with Abraxis BioScience for many years in a similar capacity to help develop their IP position for the highly successful cancer drug, Abraxane. Catherine then counseled the company through its $2.9 billion acquisition by Celgene Corporation, including providing significant IP strategy and due diligence counseling. This IP platform was a major component of the valuation of the company. She was subsequently engaged by Celgene following the acquisition.</li><li>Dewpoint Therapeutics hired Catherine to lead their patent strategy. Dewpoint is on the cutting edge with technology relating to condensate biology, a new and paradigm-shift area of drug development. Catherine led the IP strategy and due diligence for their partnership with Bayer to research new treatments for cardiovascular and gynecological diseases. The work that Dewpoint is doing is seen as a significant move forward in the biopharma industry and opens the door to many potential new discoveries in biology through biomolecular condensates. For example, in January 2021, Dewpoint teamed up with Pfizer to develop new treatments for a rare kind of muscular dystrophy. In July 2020, Dewpoint announced their collaboration with Merck to evaluate a novel approach for the treatment of HIV.</li><li>Some of Catherine’s additional representative clients include clinical–stage and start–up companies, such as Dynavax Technologies, Cytokinetics, Alpine Immune Sciences, Aimmune Therapeutics, 10x Genomics, Sonoma Biotherapeutics, CohBar, Sangamo Therapeutics, Seagen (formerly Seattle Genetics), Frontier Medicines, Maze Therapeutics, Myst Therapeutics, Sana Biotechnology, Sirenas, Volastra Therapeutics, SQZ Biotechnologies, Lyndra Therapeutics, Dewpoint Therapeutics, TARIS Biomedical, and Cartography Biosciences.</li></ul>

Catherine Polizzi

Shannon Reaney is a seasoned patent attorney who provides strategic counsel to companies in the life sciences industry. A co-chair of the firm’s Patent Group and the cross-disciplinary Intellectual Property Group, Shannon specializes in developing and managing global patent portfolios tailored to specific business needs. Shannon has counseled clients on IP strategy in a wide variety of life sciences technologies, from diagnostic tools and methods to therapeutics at all stages of development, with a technical emphasis on small-molecule pharmaceuticals, forms, formulations, products, and methods. Her in-depth knowledge and experience make her a valuable asset for businesses seeking guidance in these sectors.With over 20 years of experience in the patent field, Shannon is a leading expert in building and strengthening patent portfolios. She specializes in developing and managing large patent portfolios for mid-size to large companies and assisting smaller clients in securing foundational intellectual property. Shannon has extensive experience with pre-litigation portfolio assessments and strategies to protect late-stage and approved products, including mitigating invalidity risks and non-infringement positions and obtaining patent term extensions, making her a valuable resource for businesses seeking to optimize their intellectual property assets.Shannon is a trusted advisor who facilitates business transactions and in-licensing opportunities through investor-side and defensive due diligence. She is a member of the firm’s Venture Intellectual Property Group and has conducted numerous due diligence evaluations for investors assessing life sciences companies in various technical areas. This work also informs her patent prosecution practice and ability to assist clients with strategic positioning for financing or other transactions.She received her Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of California, Santa Cruz, where her doctoral research concentrated on synthetic organic methodology and the use of lithium aminoborohydrides in novel hydride and amine transfer reactions. Shannon has published several first-author papers in peer-reviewed journals and has presented her research at numerous conferences, including those sponsored by the American Chemical Society and the IUPAC World Chemistry Congress. She received her B.A. in biochemistry from Occidental College, where she conducted undergraduate research investigating psoralen-DNA intercalation.

Shannon Reaney

Mr. Schwartz concentrates his practice on the representation of companies in business transactions and counseling involving intellectual property and technology, including licensing, development agreements, distribution and commercialization activities, joint ventures, outsourcing, and other services arrangements. He was the founding co-head of Morrison & Foerster’s Intellectual Property Group and has served as the firm’s managing partner.Mr. Schwartz is particularly active on transactional and counseling matters relating to computers (including hardware and both open source and proprietary software), communications equipment (including smartphones and other wireless communications devices, internet television, satellites, and other communications infrastructure), semiconductors and other electronic devices, electronic commerce, and other advanced information technology. He has represented clients such as Accenture, Altera, Autodesk, Mozilla, Netflix, Palo Alto Networks, Panasonic, Red Hat, Softbank, Sprint Nextel, Visa, Whirlpool, VMware, and Yahoo, among others.Mr. Schwartz is a frequent presenter on information technology and intellectual property issues. For example, he has lectured in the MBA program at Oxford University, and was a visiting fellow of Oxford’s Centre for Socio-Legal Studies. He also served as an adjunct instructor at Stanford Law School and lectured at the University of California (Boalt Hall) School of Law, University of Southern California Computer Law Institute, Licensing Executives Society, and American Intellectual Property Law Association.Mr. Schwartz received his B.A. degree, with high honors, from Amherst College in 1976. He studied Japanese language and history from 1976 to 1977 at Doshisha University in Kyoto, Japan, and then worked in Tokyo and Hong Kong as a reporter and editor for the Asian edition of The Wall Street Journal from 1977 to 1980. He received his J.D. degree, with honors, in 1983 from the University of Chicago Law School, where he was an editor of The University of Chicago Law Review. Following law school, he served as a law clerk to Judge John D. Butzner, Jr., United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. He joined Morrison & Foerster in 1984 and became a partner of the firm in 1990.Representative Matters<div id="scoped-content"><ul><li>Autodesk in the technology and intellectual property aspects of various transactions.</li><li>Dexcom, a San Diego-based medical device manufacturer that markets a continuous glucose monitoring device for use by people with diabetes, in a patent licensing agreement with Abbott.</li><li>SoftBank on intellectual property aspects of its $1 billion investment in OneWeb for low Earth orbit satellites to provide global broadband access.</li><li>Palo Alto Networks in its patent cross-license with Juniper Networks relating to (among other things) network security technology. </li><li>Panasonic in its disputes and settlements with Qualcomm regarding patents relating to mobile communications equipment. </li><li>Qwest in a variety of intellectual property and information technology matters, including the intellectual property and technology aspects of Qwest’s sale of its Dex directory publishing business in a $7.05 billion leveraged buyout, Qwest’s agreements with IBM and Hewlett-Packard for the establishment and outsourcing of Internet services facilities, and Qwest’s strategic relationship with BellSouth. </li><li>Red Hat in its agreement with Microsoft for offering Red Hat Enterprise Linux on Microsoft’s Azure cloud computing infrastructure.</li><li>Sprint Nextel in its agreements with Qualcomm and other companies in connection with the development, licensing and deployment of technology for the next generation of Sprint Nextel’s wireless telecommunications services. </li><li>SUSE (formerly Novell) in the formation of Open Invention Network, a company formed by SUSE, IBM, Philips, Red Hat, Sony, NEC and Google to promote the Linux operating system by using an innovative model for patents and in SUSE’s dispute with The SCO Group concerning Unix-related copyrights. </li><li>Visa in its agreement with a major investment bank to establish a customized payments platform to provide differentiated experiences for merchants and cardholders.</li><li>VMware and its AirWatch subsidiary in a patent license agreement with Good Technology relating to mobile device management (MDM). </li><li>Yahoo and SoftBank, the largest shareholders of Alibaba Group (the leading PRC-based online and mobile commerce company), in the intellectual property aspects of the carve-out and restructuring of Alipay and Alibaba’s other financial services businesses.</li></ul></div>

William Schwartz

Senior Of Counsel

Stephanie assists companies with technology and life sciences transactions, representing both private and public companies, from emerging growth through the Fortune 50. In particular, Stephanie focuses on helping companies that leverage data through technology in structuring their business and commercial transactions.Stephanie has over two decades of experience working with clients on the complex technology, intellectual property, and data rights issues across technology and business sectors, including, among others: artificial intelligence (including machine learning and other data analytics approaches), cloud services, life sciences and healthcare, the Internet of Things (IoT), fintech, digital transactions, autonomous systems, cybersecurity solutions, semiconductors, edtech and cleantech. Additionally, Stephanie advises on the commercial technology and intellectual property aspects of mergers, acquisitions, asset spin-off transactions, and private equity investments. Stephanie serves on the Responsible AI Venture Council, part of the recently launched Lucas Institute for Venture Ethics at Santa Clara University’s Markkula Center for Applied Ethics. Stephanie is also a member of the firm’s global ESG + Sustainability steering committee as well as the firm’s FinTech steering committee, where she helps to lead and collaborate with attorneys across multiple practices. Stephanie is also a sought-after speaker and thought leader on the issues at the intersection of technology and law, including regarding AI, Life Sciences and FinTech.Since 2016, Stephanie has taught as a guest lecturer in the Technology Transactions course in Cornell Law School’s Technology and Entrepreneurship LLM program at CornellTech. She also was adjunct faculty at Cornell Law School for a Legal Issues in FinTech course.

Stephanie Lynn Sharron

Ragesh Tangri brings diverse experience representing clients ranging from individuals to Fortune 100 companies in high-stakes intellectual property and trade secret disputes, in addition to commercial litigation and legal malpractice, in jurisdictions across the country. Ragesh regularly represents major technology companies, law firms, and individuals in their most significant disputes.Ragesh has litigated matters involving high-stakes breach of contract and tort claims, as well as legal malpractice and professional negligence claims arising from work done in a variety of underlying areas, including intellectual property litigation, patent prosecution, general corporate matters, and tax. He has, during several pleadings motions, obtained complete dismissal of all claims asserted against law firm clients.Ragesh also has substantial experience with intellectual property litigation, including representing Palo Alto Networks in trade secret and patent litigation, Uber in trade secret litigation, Intel in inventorship litigation, Google in a hotly contested trade secret action brought by Microsoft, and helping secure a $180M award for Cadence Design Systems in its long-running dispute with Avant! Corporation.Ragesh has earned consistent recognition as a top practitioner in California and across the United States. Among his numerous awards, Chambers recently highlighted his “excellent” skill “in handling a range of contentious IP proceedings” in its guide for trademark, copyright, and trade secret litigation, and clients have called him “incredibly diligent and smart.” Ragesh has also been repeatedly ranked by publications including Best Lawyers, IAM Patent 1000, and Super Lawyers.Ragesh serves on the Board of Governors of the Association of Business Trial Lawyers (vice president), the Northern District Historical Society (president), the California Law Review, and the Shotgun Players. He is a past president of the Edward J. McFetridge Inn of Court, a former member of the Board of Governors of the Bar Association of San Francisco, a former member of the Board of Governors of the Justice and Diversity Center, a former member and co‑chair of the Lawyer Representatives of the Northern District of California to the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference, a former member and chair of BASF’s Judiciary Committee, and a former member of the Board of Directors of Slow Food Nation. He has taught the Introduction to Civil Procedure and Law on Lawyering courses at Berkeley Law School and spoken frequently on issues, including trade secret law, professional negligence, ethics, claim construction, and the differences between the U.S. and Canadian legal systems.Ragesh earned his J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law. He clerked for the Hon. A. Raymond Randolph on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. In 2009, Ragesh co‑founded Durie Tangri, a premier litigation boutique firm acquired by Morrison Foerster in 2022.

Ragesh Tangri

Michael (Mike) Ward is co-chair of the firm's Life Sciences + Healthcare Group, Patent Group, Intellectual Property Group, and Food + Agriculture Group.As co-chair of the Patent Group, Mike manages a team that includes 80+ Ph.D.s and 100+ attorneys and others with advanced scientific degrees in life sciences and related engineering disciplines. From small molecules and antibodies to gene editing, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, MoFo has deep experience protecting some of the most important innovations in the life sciences and food and agriculture sectors.Life SciencesFor his work across the life sciences sector, Mike was named San Francisco Biotechnology Lawyer of the Year by Best Lawyers in America in 2020 and is recommended for his patent strategy and prosecution practice in LMG Life Sciences. He also led the team that was named 2022 Patent Management and Strategy Firm of the Year at the 2022 LMG Life Sciences Americas Awards.Food + AgricultureRecognized as “one of the world’s foremost plant and agriculture IP lawyers,” Mike manages a wide range of intellectual property issues related to plants and plant products. He and his team advise clients on plant and plant utility patents; licensing agreements for plant IP; litigation in U.S. state and federal court and before the International Trade Commission; and regulatory approvals from the USDA, FDA, and EPA for gene edited and genetically engineered plants.Patent Strategy + ProsecutionMike is a Legal 500 US Hall of Fame lawyer for patent prosecution and is consistently named one of the leading IP lawyers by Managing Intellectual Property, Chambers USA and Chambers Global, and IAM Patent 1000.Mike works closely with many clients to develop and manage their patent portfolios. He helps clients identify, monitor, and assess the infringement risks of third-party patents. He also assists clients in preparing both offensive and defensive patent portfolios, with a particular emphasis on drafting patent applications that will be utilized in licensing and in litigation efforts.IP Due DiligenceFor venture capitalists seeking to invest in early- and mid-stage companies, underwriters involved in IPOs, and companies seeking to acquire or merge with other companies, Mike has managed extensive IP diligence. His work includes assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of patent portfolios, evaluation of freedom to operate issues, and strategic recommendations for maximizing the value of patent portfolios going forward.Mike also works closely with the IP Litigation Group on various litigation matters including patent interferences to determine the first-to-invent and patent re-examination work and actively participates in both mediation and arbitration proceedings on behalf of clients in the life sciences and food and agriculture areas.He is a frequent lecturer and speaker. Among numerous speaking engagements, Mike is the IP instructor at the UC Davis Licensing Academy and founded Morrison Foerster’s annual Harvard Biotechnology Club Fall Patent Law Course.Mike holds a Ph.D. in plant physiology (biochemistry) and an M.S. in agronomy from the University of California, Davis; a B.S. in biology from the University of California, Berkeley; and a J.D. from Golden Gate University School of Law. He was a post-doctoral fellow in plant molecular biology at the Harvard Medical School and the Department of Molecular Biology at Massachusetts General Hospital, where he worked on the Arabidopsis genome project.

Michael Ward

Chie Yakura is a partner of the Litigation Department of Morrison Foerster Law Offices. She represents both non-Japanese and Japanese corporations in a wide range of complex litigation matters with an emphasis on intellectual property, technology transactions and trade secrets, antitrust/competition law, as well as cross-border contractual and commercial disputes and product liability matters. Chie also focuses on anti-corruption and compliance matters and conducts internal investigations. She has handled cases in a variety of industries, including software, hardware, consumer electronics, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, transportation, real estate and manufacturing.Chie received her LL.B. from Kyoto University in 1999 and graduated from the Legal Training and Research Institute of the Supreme Court of Japan in 2000. Chie also received an LL.M. from Columbia Law School in 2005 and an LL.M. in international business law from the University of London, London School of Economics and Political Science in 2006.Chie is a bengoshi, admitted to practice in Japan in 2000. She is also a benrishi (patent attorney) in Japan and admitted in New York.Chie is a member of the Dai-ichi Tokyo Bar Association, the Japan Patent Attorneys Association and the American Bar Association.

Chie Yakura

Ruth Arkley is Of Counsel based in the London office of Morrison Foerster and is a member of the Intellectual Property Group.Ruth practices in intellectual property, technology and commercial law, with a focus on innovative technologies and data protection. She advises clients on transactional, contentious and regulatory matters across a range of industries including life sciences, technology, retail, luxury brands and the creative sectors. Ruth’s experience includes advising in respect of the protection and enforcement of all major IP rights including copyright, trade marks and passing off, designs, patents, confidential information and domain names. She also helps clients to develop IP portfolios and to monetise their rights by way of strategic licensing.Ruth is listed in the Legal 500 as a ‘Recommended Lawyer’ for Intellectual Property: Trade Marks, Copyright and Design, and as a ‘Notable Practitioner’ in Managing IP’s IP Stars. She teaches on the ‘IP Transactions: Law and Practice’ course at University College London. Ruth studied Law at Clare College, University of Cambridge and was awarded a Diploma in Intellectual Property Law from the University of Oxford. Before joining Morrison Foerster, Ruth was a partner at Brown Rudnick. She trained at Latham & Watkins.Ruth is qualified as a solicitor in England and Wales.<h4>Representative Experience</h4><ul><li>Advising World-Leading COVID Rapid Test Provider Excalibur Healthcare Services on a ground-breaking Licence and Development Agreement with Sensyne Health in respect of the use of Excalibur’s lateral flow diagnostic tests with Sensyne Health’s clinical AI software, ‘MagnifEye’.</li><li>Acting for an international drug development company on a High Court breach of confidence action against an employee.</li><li>Novaerus Patents Limited v Quest International (UK) Limited [2016] EWHC 95 (Ch): Represented medical technology provider Novaerus Patents Limited in a complex contractual dispute about the sale of various patents and subsequent cross-licensing.</li><li>Acting for a software development company on a High Court Technology & Construction Court dispute with a global retail bank.</li><li>Acting for an electrical wholesaler on a passing off action against a listed building merchant’s business.</li><li>Leading a European cookie audit and compliance project for a FTSE 100 consumer goods company, coordinating legal and technical teams over 15 jurisdictions.</li><li>Supporting a NYSE-listed biopharmaceutical company in complying with U.K. and European consumer protection and advertising law.</li><li>Regularly drafting and advising on the terms and conditions, privacy policies and end user licence agreements for websites and apps.</li></ul>

Ruth Arkley

Of Counsel

Lily Li is a partner in the firm’s Litigation Group. She has represented companies in high-stakes patent litigation, trade secret matters, competitor cases, non-practicing entity assertions, and commercial disputes.Leveraging her in-house experience and technical expertise, Lily collaborates with clients to create and execute effective legal strategies that achieve their business objectives. Lily has litigated before state and federal courts, the International Trade Commission, international arbitration tribunals, and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Her matters have spanned a wide range of technologies, including computer hardware and software, semiconductors, autonomous driving, aviation, consumer electronics, wireless communication, medical devices, and pharmaceuticals. Lily has been repeatedly recognized as one of the “Ones to Watch” by Best Lawyers, a “Rising Star” by Managing IP, and a “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers.Lily frequently advises domestic and international clients in complex cross-border disputes. She was selected to participate in the Federal Circuit Bar Association’s Global Fellows program in 2023-2024, which brings together emerging leaders from the global IP community.Lily is devoted to promoting justice and committed to pro bono work. She has volunteered countless hours to litigate matters to champion human rights and improve children’s public education.During and before law school, Lily was an intellectual property manager for a semiconductor company, where she prosecuted patent applications and strategized the company’s global patent portfolios. Lily earned her bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. She also studied and researched artificial intelligence during graduate school and published articles, including in the IEEE Transactions on Neural Networks.Lily is a native Mandarin speaker and is admitted to practice in California and before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and Federal Circuit.