Director, Patents– Pharmaceuticals (Chemistry)

Role Summary

Director, Patents – Pharmaceuticals (Chemistry). Gaithersburg, MD. Hybrid work—on average 3 days a week from the office.

Responsibilities

• Independently lead all aspects of build, maintenance and defense of specific patent portfolios
• Actively counsel members of Research & Development organizations to identify new inventions as well as devise and implement strategies for patent protection over the extended drug development life cycle
• Build and implement global strategic approaches toward building patent portfolios and contributing to increased business value
• Prepare and prosecute patent applications worldwide including effectively managing outside counsel as needed
• Lead all aspects of large intellectual property estates in AstraZeneca's core and opportunistic therapeutic areas
• Evaluate and monitor patent portfolios of third parties
• Develop and communicate IP guidance to partners across the business, including within R&D, Business Development, commercial and legal
• Review and analyze license agreements and other contracts
• Provide IP and technical analysis in support of patent litigation and oppositions
• Identifying and managing all associated IP risks for your project ‚Äì presenting them to IP, legal and business teams. You‚Äôll craft strategies for the filing, prosecution, maintenance and defense of patents in your portfolio against third-party challenges.
• Managing external spend to meet budget targets
• You may also work on business development deals or coordinate our response to legal changes in a particular country or region

Qualifications

• Qualified US patent attorney, with previous experience of handling pharmaceutical patent portfolios
• Bachelors degree or equivalent in Chemistry
• At least 7 years of relevant experience in life science patent prosecution with global portfolios
• Strong core chemical/small molecule pharmaceutical patent prosecution skills and ability to independently lead patent dockets and portfolios in multiple markets and jurisdictions
• Strong communication skills
• Ability to be an enterprise leader for the organization
• High level of integrity and motivation, ability to work independently
• Ability to balance multiple tasks and projects with constantly evolving priorities

Desirable

• Education to Ph.D. level or equivalent, and/or several years of laboratory experience in the relevant scientific area
• Experience in the biotech and/or pharmaceutical industry
• Combined in-house and law firm experience preferred
• Experience in leading external service providers
• First-hand experience of IP-related litigation

Skills

• IP strategy and portfolio management
• Patent prosecution and litigation support
• Cross-functional collaboration with R&D, business development, legal
• Budget management and vendor oversight
• Global patent landscape awareness

Education

• Bachelors degree or equivalent in Chemistry
• Ph.D. preferred (Desirable)

Additional Requirements

• Office Working: in-office minimum of three days per week