Firm News

Three Snell & Wilmer Attorneys Recognized as Leaders of Influence in Life Sciences by the San Diego Business Journal

Jun 03, 2025

SAN DIEGO – Snell & Wilmer is pleased to announce that attorneys Bardia Moayedi, April M. Wurster, and Sarah Hibbard have been recognized as “Leaders of Influence in Life Sciences” by the San Diego Business Journal. This award honors individuals making significant contributions to the life sciences sector in San Diego.

Moayedi is a corporate and securities partner and co-chair of Snell & Wilmer’s Life Sciences Industry Group. He advises life sciences companies from formation through IPOs and acquisitions, with experience in seed financings, public offerings, and M&As. He has led transactions across the industry, including the acquisition of a therapeutics company and multiple IPOs for clinical-stage biotherapeutics and medical device companies. His clients include emerging growth companies, public enterprises, and venture capital firms. Moayedi serves on the board of EvoNexus and advises incubators at UC San Diego, UC Irvine, and SDSU. He also teaches life sciences entrepreneurship at UCSD’s School of Pharmacology.

Wurster is an intellectual property partner and co-chair of Snell & Wilmer’s Life Sciences Industry Group. She advises life sciences companies on patent strategy, IP transactions, and commercial agreements involving licensing and manufacturing. With a master’s in molecular biology and early research experience at UCSF, she brings both technical and legal insight to her practice. She has held in-house legal roles at regenerative medicine and diagnostic companies and works with startups, universities, and multinational corporations. Her work focuses on aligning IP strategies with business objectives.

Hibbard is counsel at Snell & Wilmer. She advises life sciences and digital health companies on corporate governance, financings, M&A, and commercial agreements, including licensing, collaborations, tech transfers, and clinical trial arrangements. A former general counsel to biotech and MedTech companies, she also counsels boards and executives on compliance, risk, and capital planning. She serves on the board of Connect, guest lectures at UCSD and SDSU, and supports founders through SDSU’s Zip Launchpad and the Start-up Legal Garage at UC Law San Francisco.

About Snell & Wilmer

Founded in 1938, Snell & Wilmer is a full-service business law firm with more than 500 attorneys practicing in 17 locations throughout the United States and in Mexico, including Los Angeles, Orange County, Palo Alto and San Diego, California; Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona; Denver, Colorado; Washington, D.C.; Boise, Idaho; Las Vegas and Reno-Tahoe, Nevada; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Portland, Oregon; Dallas, Texas; Salt Lake City, Utah; Seattle, Washington; and Los Cabos, Mexico. The firm represents clients ranging from large, publicly traded corporations to small businesses, individuals and entrepreneurs. For more information, visit swlaw.com.

Media Contact

Olivia Nguyen-Quang

Associate Director of Communications
media@swlaw.com 714.427.7490