Carpmaels & Ransford LLP

Life Sciences

Mark leads the Biotechnology team at Carpmaels & Ransford. Mark’s impressive Biotech-only practice focusses on the rapid and effective building of commercially valuable European patent portfolios for small and medium-sized clients. Mark enjoys devising and implementing pragmatic drafting, filing, prosecution and defence strategies for the European Patent Office, in close collaboration with his long-standing clients. Mark also has a proven track record in co-ordinating large global patent portfolios for the firm’s clients, most notably Ionis Pharmaceuticals.

Mark works closely with clients to devise family and portfolio-wide filing and prosecution strategies, and to implement these strategies across large numbers of cases in a variety of territories, minimising the burden on the client team. Mark has very substantial experience of both pre-grant (examination and appeal) and post-grant (opposition and appeal) proceedings before the European Patent Office, as well as abundant experience prosecuting cases before the UK Intellectual Property Office. This has resulted in an enviable reputation for obtaining and defending broad early claims to important new Biotech innovations, including for important cases originating from leading global academic institutions, including Stanford University. Mark also regularly advises clients on freedom to operate and enjoys working closely with the firm’s Dispute Resolution and Transactions teams to provide clients with holistic IP advice.

Mark has been centrally involved in the filing and prosecution of many European patents on antisense therapeutics, especially for Ionis Pharmaceuticals, including those covering Kynamro® (mipomersen) and Spinraza® (nusinersen). Recently, Mark has been pivotal to the successful prosecution and defence of key patents on an adult adipose stem cell product. Mark also has detailed knowledge of current commercial non-invasive pre-natal testing (NIPT) methods including Verinata Health’s verify® test, having prosecuted and defended multiple patents in this area, including Stanford University’s ‘Quake’ patent estate.

Mark joined Carpmaels & Ransford in 2001, shortly after graduating from Oxford University with a first class Masters degree in Molecular & Cellular Biochemistry, with specialisms that included Biotechnology and Immunology. His undergraduate research project involved surface plasmon resonance binding studies with CD147 fusion proteins.

MBiochem (University of Oxford) Chartered Patent Attorney European Patent Attorney European Patent Litigator