Therapeutics
Helping our clients build and retain strong IP protection for continued innovation
Bringing a therapeutic to market involves considerable risks and requires significant resources. Patents and SPCs covering therapeutics are therefore among the most important and valuable assets that biotech companies own. The core of our Biotechnology team’s work is to protect our clients’ interests in this area.
Our clients in this area range from small companies seeking investment or planning their first clinical trials, to large multinationals with multiple blockbuster products. We recognise the different needs of our diverse range of clients, and pride ourselves on providing bespoke, strategic advice of the highest standard. We understand the importance of the different types of IP incentives to our clients’ commercial operations and we work together with our clients to build an IP strategy that takes into account the interplay between legal and commercial factors specific to human and veterinary therapeutics.
We have an enviable depth of experience tackling some of the particularly difficult issues specific to this area, including the complexities of first, second, and further medical use claims and SPC case law. We are constantly building on our proven track record in fields such as vaccines, antibodies and antisense, and are centrally involved in new growth areas, such as immuno-oncology, cell therapy and the microbiome. We continue to be entrusted with the protection and defence of some of the most important innovations in this area, often for blockbuster and first-in-class products. In recent years we have assisted our clients with therapeutics such as: ABRAXANE®, AVONEX®, BEXSERO®, DARZALEX®, DUPIXENT®, FLUCELVAX®, FORSTEO®, HUMIRA®, IDELVION®, LONQUEX®, PRALUENT®, RESPREEZA®, SIMPONI®, SPINRAZA®, STELARA®, TAKHZYRO®, TREMFYA®, WAYLIVRA® and numerous others.
Meet the Therapeutics team
Supporting a pioneer in CAR T cell therapy – Bristol-Myers Squibb
Carpmaels & Ransford supports BMS with its European patent portfolio relating to CAR T cell therapies, including two of its leading products, Breyanzi® and Abecma®. These products are personalised therapies, where each patient’s own immune cells are removed and engineered to express chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) designed to target antigens on the cancer cells, before being infused back into the patient.
Our team helps BMS secure patent protection for a wide range of innovations relating to many different aspects of CAR T cell therapy, including CAR constructs, methods of manufacture, and administration protocols. The methods for manufacturing bespoke cell therapies are particularly complex and involve innovation in diverse fields, ranging from cellular biomarkers to automation and AI. New administration protocols and combination therapies are continually being developed. In this field, we helps BMS navigate the EPO’s restrictions on patenting methods of treatment and diagnosis and evolving case law regarding ‘plausibility’.
We also defends BMS’ patents against third-party oppositions in this highly competitive field of technology.
