Michael G. Biro

Mr. Biro has extensive experience practicing intellectual property law and advising clients, primarily in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. His experience includes patent preparation and prosecution, opinion work, due diligence work, contract drafting and negotiation, and regulatory exclusivity counseling. He assists a wide variety of clients ranging from independent inventors, start-ups and emerging companies to large academic research institutions and Fortune 500 companies. In addition, he has considerable industry experience. 

Prior to joining Lathrop & Gage, Mr. Biro worked for Archemix Corp., a small biopharmaceutical company in Cambridge, Massachusetts; PDL Biopharma (formerly Protein Design Labs), a mid-size biopharmaceutical company in Redwood City, California; Schering-Plough, a large, international pharmaceutical company in Kenilworth, New Jersey; and a large, international law firm in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

His notable experience includes:

• Developing and implementing patent strategies, building strong patent portfolios, and advising clients on issues relating to patent portfolio management.
• Preparing and prosecuting patent applications worldwide in a variety of fields, including biology, biochemistry, chemistry, organic chemistry, immunology, pharmaceuticals, pharmaceutical formulations, biologics, medical devices, nutraceuticals, aptamers, small organic molecules, proteins, peptides, antibodies, nucleic acids, vectors, host cells, hybridomas, transgenic animals, protein crystals, assays, and research tools. 

  ---

• Preparing opinions and advising clients regarding patentability, patent validity, non-infringement, freedom-to-operate, third party patent positions, the Hatch-Waxman Act, and the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act, to enable use of a client’s patent portfolio both offensively and defensively. 
• Advising clients during all stages of product development in order to protect product commercialization. 
• Advising clients and performing due diligence investigations in connection with partnerships and collaborations, and with the acquisition, sale, or licensing of intellectual property assets. 
• Advising clients regarding licensing issues, and drafting and negotiating numerous types of contracts in order to achieve a client’s research objectives and business goals, while protecting its products and intellectual property assets. 

Court Memberships

• U.S. Patent and Trademark Office 
• Wisconsin
• Pennsylvania
• U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania

Honors

• Marquette Intellectual Property Law Review
• Finalist, Sigma Xi Outstanding Student Research Award

Publications

• M. Biro and B. Pike, "Recent Changes to the Patent Statute," Intellectual Property Alert, January, 2000 
• Joseph W. Barnard, et al., "Neutrophil Inhibitory Factor Prevents Neutrophil-Dependent Lung Injury," 155 The Journal of Immunology 4876, 1995