Sheppard Mullin Adds Life Sciences IP Duo In Del Mar
Sheppard Mullin is pleased to announce that partner Jing Liu, Ph.D., and associate Paul Chang, Ph.D., have joined the firm’s Intellectual Property practice group in its San Diego (Del Mar) office. Liu and Chang were most recently with Knobbe Martens and bring to Sheppard Mullin experience in a wide array of disciplines in the life sciences, including diagnostics, genomics, bioinformatics, industrial biotechnology, and oncology. These two new IP attorneys follow on a three-attorney IP team, headed by Harper Batts, who joined Sheppard Mullin in Palo Alto from Baker Botts last September.
“Our nationally recognized IP practice continues chalking up client successes across the country,” said Guy Halgren, Sheppard Mullin’s Chairman. “We are focused on ensuring that we have the very best practitioners to handle our clients’ most sophisticated and valuable IP. Jing and Paul are outstanding additions and their work for U.S. and international clients broadens our ability to protect and defend myriad inventions and technological advancements.”
Commenting on Liu and Chang’s arrival, IP practice group leader Dan Yannuzzi said, “We continue to add amazing talent and we’re thrilled to have Jing and Paul join our team. We have a strong life sciences contingent in our group, led by partners Lorna Tanner and Alex Nie, and Jing and Paul are an excellent complement. They bring amazing interdisciplinary technical capabilities, including diagnostics and bioinformatics, to the firm and their deep experience in life sciences and other complex technologies further strengthens our ability to work with some of the most innovative companies in the world.”
Liu represents both U.S. and foreign clients on patent procurement and beyond. She has extensive experience in management of patents and other intellectual property assets, patent validity and noninfringement opinions, IP due diligence, competitive IP landscape analyses, licensing and other transactions. She practices in a wide range of complex technological areas, from biotechnology (including oncology, gene therapy, industrial biotechnology, diagnostics, genomics, bioinformatics, microbiome-related technologies) and pharmaceuticals to chemicals and nanotechnology. Liu received her B.S. in Biology from Wuhan University in China; her Ph.D. in Biology from the University of Kansas Medical Center; and her J.D. from the University of Utah - S.J. Quinney College of Law.
With advanced training in life sciences and computer science, Chang is a go-to person for complex and inter-disciplinary technologies. Clients entrust him with securing protections in the areas of genomics, bioinformatics, and personalized medicine, ranging from multiomics data collection, processing, and analysis to disease diagnosis and treatment. Chang also has extensive experience in big data mining and analytics (including artificial intelligence, computer vision, and augmented reality) and blockchain technologies. Beyond IP procurement, Chang works with clients on validity analyses, infringement studies, IP due diligence investigations, clearance investigations, and licensing agreements and strategies. Chang received his B.S. with majors in Biochemistry, Chemistry, and Mathematics from the University of Cape Town; his M.S. in Computer Science and his Ph.D. in Genetic, Molecular and Cellular Biology from University of Southern California; and his J.D. from University of Michigan Law School.
Sheppard Mullin (with nearly 130 attorneys in offices in downtown San Diego and Del Mar) is the largest full-service law firm in San Diego County and serves a wide array of clients, from local start-ups to large multi-national corporations. The firm’s Intellectual Property practice group has more than 100 attorneys and is ranked as a top firm in multiple categories in Patexia's 2018 IPR Intelligence Report. The group was also recently listed on the National Law Journal’s IP Hot List and recognized by Law360 as "Intellectual Property Practice Group of The Year."