Mountain View, CA (October 16, 2015)– Fenwick & West is pleased to announce that the firm was honored with the Collaboration Impact Deal of the Year award at Euromoney’s LMG Life Sciences Annual Awards. This year, the firm was recognized for its representation of Google-backed Calico in its collaboration with AbbVie. Patent partner Bob Hulse was also shortlisted among the best patent prosecution lawyers in the world.
The novel scientific collaboration between Calico, the Google-backed life sciences company, and AbbVie, a global, research-based biopharmaceutical company, was announced in September 2014. Each company agreed to contribute $250 million to find the collaboration, with a potential for each to contribute an additional $500 million, yielding a total of $1.5 billion.
Calico leader and former Genentech executive Art Levinson said that this one-of-a kind, landmark deal was “a pivotal event” that will “greatly accelerate our efforts to understand the science of aging, advance our clinical work, and help bring new therapies to patients everywhere,” according to a statement quoted by the San Francisco Chronicle.
The Fenwick team advising Calico included partners Gordy Davidson, Jake Handy, Effie Toshav and Matt Rossiter. Davidson and Rossiter, along with Dawn Belt, David Forst and Jay Cosel represented Dr. Levinson in the initial formation of Calico and its funding by Google over a year ago.
Based in Silicon Valley, patent partner Bob Hulse works with leading high-technology and life sciences companies, supporting them as they develop and curate powerful patent portfolios to protect innovative technologies and defend against patent trolls.
“He is singled out by peers for his experience designing unique prosecution strategies, as well as handling post-grant reviews and IPR proceedings,” reported LMG Life Sciences.
The publication has also recognized him as a Life Sciences Star for his outstanding contributions to the life sciences industry. In addition, Hulse has received many other accolades for his work, including being named among California’s top 25 patent prosecution attorneys for the second year in-a-row in 2015 by the Daily Journal and as a national ‘Rising Star’ by Law360. He’s also been listed among IAM Patent’s World’s Leading 1000 Patent Practitioners and Silicon Valley Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 list.
Compiled through a qualitative process of peer opinion, market feedback and independent research, the LMG Life Sciences Awards recognize preeminent lawyers and law firms working in the life sciences sector.
Honorees are selected based on research involving more than 1,000 surveys and interviews, as well as a review of public information and feedback from clients within the industry.
Fenwick lawyers and the firm as whole are consistently recognized by the publication. In 2014, the firm was honored with the Licensing & Collaboration Impact Deal of the Year for its representation of Resolve in its $250 million partnership with Takeda Pharmaceutical Company.
About Fenwick & West
Fenwick & West provides comprehensive legal services to ground-breaking technology and life sciences companies – at every stage of their lifecycle – and the investors that partner with them. We craft innovative, cost-effective and practical solutions on issues ranging from venture capital, public offerings, joint ventures, M&A and strategic relationships, to intellectual property, litigation and dispute resolution, taxation, antitrust, and employment and labor law. For more than four decades, Fenwick has helped some of the world's most recognized companies become and remain market leaders. For information about a career at Fenwick visit us at fenwick.com/careers.