With this drive and focus, April actively engages with clients as they navigate the complex legal issues that emerge as they acquire or capitalize on intellectual property. April can do this exceptionally well because she began on the inside. April worked in stem cell research at UCSF and then as an in-house lawyer for a regenerative medicine company obtaining some of the industry’s first patents in cells derived from pluripotent stem cells and medical device systems for cell encapsulation and implantation.
Her depth of inside knowledge in these sectors gives her firsthand experience and context. As a result, she understands and empathizes with her clients. She can quickly grasp her clients’ unique needs and objectives and tailor legal advice that helps ensure successful outcomes and long-term growth.
April currently serves as co-chair of the Life Sciences Industry Group at Snell and Wilmer’s San Diego office. Today, her practice has an emphasis on patent drafting and prosecution as well as technology transactions such as manufacturing and licensing agreements.
Intellectual Property
Patents: April assists clients from early- and mid-stage startups to public companies, as well as universities with protecting their intellectual property across a diverse range of industries, including cell and gene therapies, therapeutics, SaaS, pharmaceuticals, diagnostic tests, and medical devices. April has extensive experience conducting Freedom to Operate analyses, collaborating with scientific and technical personnel to identify patentable inventions, and drafting and prosecuting patents.
Trademarks: April advises international and U.S. companies on trademark matters, including trademark clearances, ensuring proper trademark usage on product marketing materials, trademark enforcement, licenses, filing and prosecuting trademark applications. April routinely counsels clients regarding name changes and brand name selection.
Trade Secrets: April advises clients on trade secret protections, such as identifying key trade secrets, creating trade secret registries, and developing policies for protecting trade secrets, which may include amending contracts, marking documents as trade secrets, putting access restriction controls on documents containing trade secrets, and training employees.
Life Sciences Transactions
April is a member of the firm’s Life Science and Medical Technology Industry Group. She provides commercial contracting advice to regenerative medicine, CDMOs, CROs, medical device, and diagnostics clients. April is well-versed in the legal requirements of regenerative medicine and CDMO clients, including their regulatory framework requirements, rapidly evolving technology, and competitive landscape. She has vast experience negotiating pre-clinical and clinical trial agreements, material transfer agreements, master service agreements, master research and development agreements, joint development agreements, collaborative research agreements, licenses, strategic alliances, acquisitions, manufacturing and supply agreements, quality agreements (R&D, manufacturing, and clinical trial), data privacy agreements, clinical study agreements, and SaaS agreements.
IP Litigation
April serves as a trusted advisor for matters related to trademarks, copyright, and patents, drawing upon her broad experience with each aspect of the litigation lifecycle, from filing and discovery to jury trial or settlements.