© 2012 The Texas Lawbook.
By Natalie Posgate
Staff Writer for The Texas Lawbook
Tracey Davies, an experienced life sciences patent litigation lawyer, will be following the America Invents Act and other new developments from her new office at Dallas’ Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.
She joins as a partner, moving from Austin’s Vinson & Elkins, where she practiced law for 14 years.
Davies said her practice focuses on maximizing the intellectual property value of her clients through both patent litigation and transactional work. She specializes in strategic patent portfolio development and management, licensing and strategic partnerships, and branded versus generic pharmaceutical matters.
Her clients are in the life sciences and biotechnology sectors. Davies represents companies in the pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical, medical device, life science research tool, industrial biotechnology and agricultural biotechnology industries. She also has experience with nanotechnology, computer software and mechanical devices.
Davies said presenting evidence to jurors on complicated scientific issues is a constant challenge. An example is a case that Davies recently finished involving engineered industrial enzymes. Many of the jurors had only high school knowledge of enzymes, yet most of the experts were testifying on a Ph. D level. The jury initially ruled against Davies and her client but the judge ended up overruling the decision.
“That was a significant case for our clients and it was really important to our client that we prevailed,” she said.
A couple of current hot issues in her practice involve the new America Invents Act and the rulings associated with the Myriad Genetics case – which recently reaffirmed the company’s right to patent two genes linked to breast and ovarian cancer.
She said that life science companies have lately been undergoing regulatory pressures and scrutiny from the FDA, so it will be interesting to see how the two recent case rulings will affect her clients.
“It will be something a lot of people will be paying attention to as courts determine what federal circuit rulings will really mean,” Davies said.
Davies said that she is happy to join the life sciences team at Gibson Dunn and continue to build on her practice.
“I look forward to continue my life science practice and [continue growing] it,” she said.
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