Rated by clients as ‘one of the top, if not the top' IP firms in Israel, Liad Whatstein & Co. Law Office is well-known for handling the full spectrum of contentious and non-contentious patent-related issues across the life sciences and healthcare sector. The ’technically excellent, diligent and dedicated' Liad ‎ Whatstein and Amira Mangelus jointly lead the team. Primarily acting for global pharma companies, Whatstein is an IP litigator who has deep knowledge of healthcare regulatory issues and blockbuster drug lifecycle management. Mangelus is an expert in patent litigation, handling infringement actions and patent application prosecutions. Oren Weiner has exceptional expertise in patent term extensions, regularly appearing before the Israeli Patent offices and district courts.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

  • ‘Liad Whatstein is one of the top, if not the top, patent litigation firms in Israel. The team is very diligent and comes up with creative arguments, which put them head and shoulders above the rest of the firms.’

  • ‘Liad Whatstein is a technically excellent, diligent and dedicated partner who is always available. He is an excellent cross-examiner, and an all round excellent lawyer.’

  • ‘Amira Mangelus has a technical background and has extensive experience with complex cross-border litigations. She is one of the founding partners of the firm, giving pragmatic advice.’

  • ‘Gershon Finesilver is a stand-out patent attorney, with an extensive technical background. His technical knowledge in biological fields excellent and he really understands complex scientific matters.’

Key clients

  • Novartis
  • Sanofi
  • Merck
  • Pfizer
  • Roche
  • Bristol Myers
  • Takeda
  • Regeneron
  • Abbott
  • Bayer
  • Biogen
  • Astellas
  • Alkermes
  • UCB Pharma
  • Alnylam Pharmaceuticals
  • H. Lundbeck A/S
  • Leo Pharma
  • Novo Nordisk
  • Genzyme
  • The State of Israel
  • L’Oréal
  • Unilever
  • The Hebrew University
  • InterMune
  • Dr. Fischer Pharmaceuticals
  • Harvard University
  • Immunogen Inc.
  • Advanced Accelerator Applications
  • MIT
  • University of Georgia Research Foundation, Inc.
  • Memo Therapeutics AG
  • Axcella Health Inc.
  • Innate PharmaS.A.
  • Principia Biopharma Inc.
  • Translate Bio, Inc
  • Ryvu Therapeutics S.A.
  • Acceleron Pharma, Inc.
  • Arbor Biotechnologies, Inc.
  • Kymab Ltd.

Work highlights

  • Advising major pharmaceutical companies, including Merck & Co., Sanofi, Pfizer, Novartis, BMS, Regeneron, Astellas and Roche on regulatory matters in connection with the local regulatory requirements of the Ministry of Health, including obtaining regulatory approvals for drugs, Data Exclusivity and strategic issues relating to the interplay and linkage between regulatory permits in Israel and worldwide and extension of patent term. The advice relates to blockbuster drugs and is instrumental both in terms of regulatory compliance as well to obtain adequate protection for the massive investments of the companies in pharmaceutical R&D.
  • Representing Sanofi and Regeneron in complex proceedings against Amgen’s patent claiming anti-PCSK9 antibodies. In addition to the complex scientific issues and the experiments submitted by the clients, the matter involves precedential legal issues relating to the scope of antibody patents and whether it is permissible to obtain functional antibody claims.
  • Advising the State of Israel in connection with life science technologies developed in government hospitals and which are service inventions under Israeli law. The work involves licensing technologies to third parties and pursing technologies which have been licensed without the State’s authorization.

Lawyers

Leading partners
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.

Practice head

The lawyer(s) leading their teams.

Liad Whatstein, Amira Mangelus

Other key lawyers

Oren Weiner, Gershon Finesilver