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Perkins Coie Adds Former Administrative Patent Judge and Biotech IP Associate to its Washington, D.C. Office
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
Washington, DC -- Perkins Coie (www.perkinscoie.com) is pleased to announce that Joan Ellis, Ph.D. and Todd Samelman, Ph.D. have joined the D.C. office. These attorneys join the seven IP attorneys that joined the D.C. office last month. Dr. Ellis joins as of counsel and Dr. Samelman joins as an associate. Both attorneys focus their practices on patent interferences and appeals, litigation and procurement in the life sciences industry.
Dr. Ellis, formerly served as an Administrative Patent Judge at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences, where she was responsible for handling many of the biotech patent interferences as well as ex parte appeals at the Patent Office. Dr. Ellis, who holds a Ph.D. in molecular parasitology from New York University (NYU), focuses her practice on patent interferences, patent appeals, patent prosecution and litigation with a particular emphasis in biotechnology. Dr. Ellis has represented clients in inter partes and ex parte appeals before the USPTO Board of Appeals and Interferences as well as patent infringements at the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the International Trade Commission. She also serves as an arbitrator, including as a panelist for the American Arbitration Association, and as an expert in patent litigation matters. Prior to becoming a lawyer, she spent approximately 10 years working at NYU and the Rockefeller University as a scientist conducting basic research involving genetic material.
Todd Samelman, Ph.D. focuses his practice on patent prosecution and litigation. Dr. Samelman, who holds a Ph.D. in cell biology and physiology from the University of South Florida College of Medicine, is a registered patent attorney and represents clients in complex technical and scientific matters in the life sciences area. In addition to patent prosecution and litigation, Dr. Samelman also has significant experience in patent reexaminations and the licensing of intellectual property.
They join an intellectual property practice which includes nearly 200 lawyers focused on IP litigation, patent and trademark prosecution, technology licensing, copyrights, and trade secret and unfair competition counseling and also a group of over 50 life sciences attorneys who represent clients across a full range of life sciences areas, including biologics, diagnostics, medical devices and pharmaceuticals.
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