San Francisco—Foley & Lardner LLP announced today the addition of four attorneys to its Life Sciences Industry Team in Northern California. Traci H. Ropp and Gurjeev K. Sachdeva join Foley’s San Francisco office, and Karen E. Flick and Antoinette F. Konski join the firm’s Silicon Valley office. This announcement marks the latest step in Foley’s national nicheing strategy to add breadth and depth in key practice areas to complement the firm’s strengths.
“Since Foley has historically been strong on the chemical side in Northern California, the tremendous biotech experience these four women bring will allow us to offer our clients a complete range of life sciences services,” said Nancy J. Geenen, managing partner of Foley’s San Francisco and Silicon Valley offices. “Their combined experience will further enhance our service offerings to clients in Northern California as well as nationally.”
The addition of these attorneys follows Foley’s acquisition in January of the Boston office of Epstein, Becker & Green, which enhanced the firm’s life sciences practice. In 2004, the firm also opened New York and Silicon Valley offices as part of its strategic plan to increase its presence in key life sciences markets.
Karen E. Flick, Ph.D., is a member of the Intellectual Property Department and Chemical & Pharmaceutical Practice Group in Foley’s Silicon Valley office. Her practice focuses on drafting and prosecuting U.S. and international patent applications and providing strategic counseling in a variety of fields, including protein chemistry, pharmaceutical sciences, biophysical chemistry, molecular biology, immunology and pharmacology. Prior to joining Foley, she practiced in the Silicon Valley office of Fish & Richardson P.C.
Antoinette F. Konski, a member of the Intellectual Property Department and Biotechnology & Pharmaceutical Practice Group in the firm’s Silicon Valley office, is a patent prosecutor with 16 years of experience. Konski represents bioscience and pharmaceutical companies, universities and individuals in all aspects of domestic and international intellectual property law. She also has experience in the areas of drug discovery, genomics, immunology, small molecules and drug delivery. Before joining the firm, she practiced in the Silicon Valley office of Bingham McCutchen LLP.
Traci H. Ropp is a member of the Intellectual Property Department and Chemical & Pharmaceutical Practice Group in Foley’s San Francisco Office. Her practice focuses on drafting and prosecuting patent applications and analyzing and managing intellectual property assets, with technical emphasis on the fields of biotechnology and pharmaceutical sciences.
Gurjeev K. Sachdeva is a member of the Intellectual Property Department in the firm’s San Francisco office. Her practice is focused on portfolio management, patent procurement and patent counseling and evaluation, with experience in complex transactional and litigation strategy and support. She also assists start-up life science companies with setting up in-house patent review and management programs.
Prior to joining Foley, Ropp and Sachdeva both practiced in the San Francisco office of Dorsey & Whitney LLP.
Foley & Lardner LLP is a provider of legal counsel to global companies. The firm’s experience encompasses a full range of corporate legal services. Foley’s nearly 1,000 attorneys understand today’s most complex business issues including corporate governance, securities enforcement, litigation, mergers and acquisitions, intellectual property and IP litigation, labor and employment, and tax. The firm offers total solutions in the automotive, e-business and information technology, energy, entertainment and media, financial services, food, golf and resort services, insurance, health care, life sciences, nanotechnology, and sports industries. The firm’s Web site can be found at www.foley.com.
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