 Participants discuss presentations and topics pertinent to intellectual property industries at Drake’s summer biotech institute. |
CONTACT:
Tory Olson, 515-271-1834, tory.olson@drake.edu
Industry
leaders, attorneys, academics and scientists recently gathered to explore
cutting-edge intellectual property issues at Drake University’s Inaugural
Summer Institute in Intellectual Property, Biotechnology and Agricultural
Sciences.
The
Intellectual Property Law Center at Drake University hosted the institute on
May 19-20 on the Johnston, Iowa, campus of Pioneer Hi-Bred, a DuPont business.
Participating in the conference were leading intellectual property and
biotechnology experts from across the United States, as well as China, India,
Italy, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
“We
are very excited about the success of this event,” said Peter K. Yu, the
Kern family chair in intellectual property law and the director of the
Intellectual Property Law Center at Drake University.
“One
of the core missions of our center is to foster a constructive dialogue among
stakeholders in the intellectual property industries. Central Iowa is the
‘Silicon Valley’ of biotechnology. Drake University is in a unique position to
promote education and research in this fast-growing area.”
The
institute was made possible by a leadership gift from Pioneer and was
cosponsored by the Drake Agricultural Law Center.
“Pioneer
is pleased to be a sponsor of this event, which brought together many of the
key players in the biotech industry,” said Daniel Jacobi, vice president
and chief legal officer at Pioneer.
“Strong
intellectual property protection is a driving force behind the continual
development of improved, higher yielding products,” Jacobi added. “It
allows companies like Pioneer to capture value from their inventions to fund
research and development which, in turn, enables growers to produce more grain
to satisfy the world’s need for food, feed, fuel and materials.”
The
first day of the institute consisted of a closed-door roundtable with
participation from the various stakeholders in the biotech industry. The second
day featured a public conference that included academic presentations
concerning the latest developments and research in the area. The institute was well received by
participants.
“The
conference was quite entertaining, interesting and enlightening,” said
Margo Bagley, Class of 1941 research professor at the University of Virginia
School of Law.
“I’ve
enjoyed these couple of days tremendously,” concurred Gregory Mandel,
professor of law at Temple University Beasley School of Law.
The summer
institute served as the closing event for the Drake Intellectual Property Law
Center during its inaugural year. Established in fall 2007, the center offers
an innovative curriculum, providing students with a solid foundation in both
the theoretical and practical aspects of intellectual property law.
The
center’s faculty consists of accessible scholars with a wide range of expertise
in various aspects of intellectual property law and related areas and experienced
attorneys practicing on the front lines of the profession. One notable member
of its faculty is Edmund Sease, a partner in the Des Moines law firm of McKee,
Voorhees & Sease PLC and a key architect of this institute.
“This
event is the first in what we hope will become an annual international
discussion of timely topics for the agricultural biotech industry,” said
Sease, who has successfully argued a patent law case before the U.S. Supreme
Court. “Des Moines and Drake Law School are logical venues for these
important discussions, with so much of the American agricultural industry
represented here.”
For more
information about the Drake Intellectual Property Law Center, visit the Web site.