First Dedicated Seminar on IP and Licensing for BioProducts and BioEnergy Sector Held at Bull, Housser & Tupper LLP

Hosted by Bull, Houser & Tupper LLP
May 6, 2009

LifeSciences British Columbia was delighted to extend a warm welcome to members of our BioProducts and BioEnergy sector for this first dedicated seminar. Attendees received valuable advice on intellectual property, licensing and partnership issues from legal experts at Bull, Houser & Tupper LLP.

Information on important issues around protecting and managing an intellectual property portfolio, understanding/mitigating freedom to operate risks and successfully licensing valuable technology was provided. As the bioproducts and bioenergy sector grows, SMEs and technology transfer professionals must be prepared to plan and negotiate partnerships for commercial success, and this seminar provided key insights to that end. 

Agenda:

    * Introduction to Intellectual Property
    * Key Issues to Consider in Technology Licensing Agreements
    * Intellectual Property Risks when licensing technology
    * Q&A
    * Networking

 
Co-Presenters:

Susan Ben-Oliel has worked in the areas of intellectual property and technology law as a patent and trademark agent for 20 years. She received her B.Sc. (Honours) in Life Sciences from Queen’s University in 1986, and qualified as a Canadian patent agent in 1988 and in the US in 1990. Susan received her LL.B in 1993 from the University of British Columbia, was called to the bar in 1994 and is a registered trade-mark agent. During the past two decades, she has gained extensive experience assisting companies in all aspects of protecting their intangible assets in Canada and internationally. She has in-depth knowledge and experience protecting the patents and trade-marks of technology companies and in positioning their technologies, from an intellectual property perspective,  in  highly competitive marketplaces.

Prior to joining Bull, Housser & Tupper, Susan worked as in-house counsel for a NASDAQ-listed technology company where she  worked closely with both the R&D and business development units in identifying new proprietary technology and monitoring competitor activity. In addition, she managed their portfolio of over 120 worldwide trade-mark applications and registrations including all oppositions and enforcement actions.

Susan routinely provides opinions on the patentability of technology, drafts and prosecutes patent applications, provides freedom to operate (infringement) opinions, strategically manages patent and trade-mark portfolios, and conducts due diligence related to intellectual property in commercial transactions and provides related opinions. Susan develops and aligns patent and trade-mark strategies to achieve a client’s business objectives, and negotiates and prepares commercial contracts including: license agreements, supply agreements, distribution agreements, service agreements, research agreements and confidentiality agreements.

Helen Yu joined Bull, Housser & Tupper in 2008 as an associate and registered patent and trade-mark agent. Helen practices exclusively in the areas of technology and intellectual property law with a particular emphasis on patent and trademark procurement and prosecution. She received her B.Sc. in Biopsychology from UBC in 1997, her LL.B from Queen’s University in 2001, and was called to the bar in 2002.

Prior to joining Bull, Housser & Tupper, Helen practiced in the Okanagan after honing her legal skills at another major law firm in Vancouver. As one of the few intellectual property practitioners servicing the entire British Columbia interior, Helen gained in-depth knowledge and extensive experience in representing local and internationally based companies conducting business in a wide range of industries and various areas of technology.

Helen's practice includes performing technology audits and due diligence on IP portfolios, providing technology protection and exploitation strategies, and assisting clients in acquiring, protecting, registering, licensing, and enforcing patents, trade-marks, copyrights, industrial designs, and other forms of intellectual property rights. Helen also advises clients on internet related matters, including domain name and contractual issues.