South Korean biotech company ToolGen has hired US litigator Dave Boncheun Koo as chief legal officer and executive vice president, part of a strategic plan to “aggressively enforce” its global patent rights.
Koo joins from South Korean firm Yulchon, where he was a partner. At ToolGen he will help lead the company’s efforts to monetise its IP portfolio through royalty income. He will work alongside executive vice president Yoori Kim, who leads the Seoul-based company’s IP business and has helped expand the company’s CRISPR RNP patent portfolio.
She also recently helped secure a ruling from the US Patent Trial and Appeal Board to resume interference proceedings to determine who was first to invent the CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing technology.
In a statement, an unnamed company official said: “While EVP Kim flawlessly consolidated the technical and legal assets essential for monetisation, EVP Koo will serve as the [game changer] – deploying these assets to finalise negotiations and deliver results. He is a proven master of litigation and negotiation, with a track record of leading complex disputes among global conglomerates to successful outcomes.”
Koo joins after a brief spell at Yulchon, having previously spent 17 years at Kim & Chang in Seoul. Earlier in his career, Koo worked in the US at firms including Baker McKenzie, Paul Hastings and defunct firm Brobeck Phleger & Harrison.
The company said Koo will focus on two strategic priorities, patent monetisation through litigation and pursuing the resumed US interference proceedings to “defend ToolGen’s technological leadership and foundational patent rights”.
It is also currently engaged in ongoing patent infringement actions against Vertex in the UK, the Netherlands and the US. The company added that Koo will seek “just compensation” from global companies for unauthorised use of ToolGen’s patented technologies.
Koo said: “EVP Yoori Kim has done an exceptional job expanding and fortifying our core patent portfolio, completing our preparation for monetisation. Now is the time to deploy our full capabilities to win infringement actions worldwide while executing a flawless strategy in the resumed interference proceedings. We will demonstrate the value of ToolGen’s foundational patents through concrete financial results.”
In other recent biotech moves, in December a trio of US life sciences companies appointed new legal heads – Sudo Biosciences, PepGen and Tonix Pharmaceuticals.
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