NewsIrell Named Life Sciences Patent Litigation Firm of the Year
Irell & Manella LLP received the Patent Litigation Firm of the Year Award at the inaugural LMG Life Sciences Awards Dinner on September 25, 2013 in New York City. The LMG Life Sciences Award recognizes the leading law firm in patent litigation in the life sciences industry over the past year.
Through extensive research, LMG Life Sciences provides in-house counsel of Fortune 500 companies in the pharmaceutical, medical device and biotechnology fields with information on the top legal practitioners in the country. Irell & Manella is noted for its deep bench of talent. Morgan Chu has been recognized in the publication as Life Sciences Star. According to the 2103 guide, Chu is considered to be a “Top 2 or 3 attorney in the life sciences industry.” Up-and-comer Jason Sheasby was noted as one to watch.
Irell has had a significant life sciences practice over the decades. The group includes numerous attorneys and technical staff who hold doctoral and other academic credentials in biochemistry, biology, chemical engineering, chemistry, molecular pharmacology and pharmacy, as well as attorneys who previously clerked for federal judges, including those on the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals. Its attorneys work closely with scientists, inventors, entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, hospitals, universities and other leading companies throughout the world in providing pharmaceutical, medical device and other related biotechnology counsel. For example, Irell represented City of Hope, a nonprofit research institute and hospital, in litigation against Genentech, which resulted in a jury verdict, more than $565 million paid by the defendant, and the largest judgment ever affirmed on appeal by California courts in any area of law. Irell also represented St. Jude Medical recently in a patent infringement case relating to vascular closure devices against AccessClosure, securing a $27.1 million jury verdict—reportedly the largest ever in the Western District of Arkansas in any area of law. In another recent matter, the firm secured a reversal on appeal in the Federal Circuit on behalf of Santarus Inc., a small pharmaceutical company, in a patent case against Par Pharmaceutical involving Santarus' acid-blocking drug, Zegerid.
