Patenting Biotechnology: CRISPR, Antibodies, Diagnostics, and Protein Based Biomaterials

July 23, 2024, 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. EST

Franklin S. Abrams, JD, PhD, Special Counsel, Hoffman Warnick

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The basic concepts of intellectual property law will be introduced. We will consider patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets and address the rationale for obtaining intellectual property rights. The focus will then turn to patenting in biotechnology and the life sciences. Recent case law and how it affects patenting in biotechnology and the life sciences, including the 2023 Supreme Court decision Amgen Inc. et al. v. Sanofi et al., will be discussed. We will examine genome editing using CRISP, clothing made from spider silk protein that has been engineered and produced in microorganisms using synthetic biology, diagnostics, and antibodies as examples of biotechnology innovations and in this context, analyze some patent claims and discuss patent infringement analysis and strategies for navigating competitive patent landscapes.

Franklin S. Abrams, Ph.D., J.D.

Franklin Abrams is a Special Counsel at the intellectual property law firm of Hoffman Warnick LLC. He has over 25 years of legal practice in intellectual property law and focuses his practice on patent law with an emphasis on the technical areas of biotechnology, life sciences, pharmaceuticals, biologicals, pharmaceutical formulations, synthetic biology, consumer products, medical devices, and the chemical arts. He has extensive experience preparing and prosecuting patent applications and drafting opinions concerning patentability of inventions and validity, non-infringement, and enforceability of patents.

Franklin has high expertise in developing and managing intellectual property portfolios for his clients. Providing carefully crafted patent prosecution strategies and counseling on all aspects of intellectual property law, he helps his clients achieve their business goals. He has substantial experience providing freedom-to-operate opinions and conducting due diligence investigations that involve evaluating patent portfolios for business transactions. Franklin also has expertise drafting and evaluating agreements relating to patents and other forms of intellectual property.

Franklin holds a B.S. in Chemistry from the State University of New York at Oneonta, an M.S. in Chemistry and a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry from the State University of New York at Stony Brook, and a J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. He is admitted to the New York State Bar and is registered to practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office.