Profile
Thomas brings over 20 years of experience to his practice, with deep expertise in pharmaceutical and chemical patent law. He combines extensive in-house and law firm experience with a strong scientific background in organic and medicinal chemistry. His experience includes:
- Extensive in-house experience as senior IP counsel at Eli Lilly & Co., managing complex patent portfolios for small-molecule active pharmaceutical ingredients and incretin-based therapies, including Orange Book listing strategy, patent term extensions, and non-US-jurisdictional prosecution and regulatory affairs.
- In-house experience with Zymergen (now Ginkgo Bioworks), managing patent portfolios for bio-based new materials and synthetic biology applications.
- In-house experience with Chevron, managing patent portfolios for mineral-based downstream products and chemical processes.
- Strong patent application preparation and prosecution experience in technological disciplines including organic chemistry, small-molecule pharmaceuticals, drug discovery and development, polymers, advanced materials, cosmetics, biological sciences, medical devices, and respiratory care technology.
- Freedom-to-operate, validity, and infringement analyses in support of strategic legal counseling, business development transactions, in-licensing and acquisition due diligence, negotiations, licensing, and venture capital investments.
- Strong skills in legal and technical due diligence.
Prior to rejoining Abel Schillinger, Thomas held several in-house IP positions, most recently as senior IP counsel at Eli Lilly & Co. in Indianapolis, Indiana, where he oversaw patent portfolio strategy for small-molecule pharmaceutical programs, working closely with R&D, business development, and regulatory affairs teams. He also served in-house at Zymergen (now Ginkgo Bioworks) and at Chevron, broadening his portfolio management experience across the biotechnology and energy sectors. Before his in-house career, Thomas practiced at Abel IP and earlier spent six years as a patent practitioner with Greenblum & Bernstein PLLC in the DC metro area, where he developed a close working relationship with the USPTO, interviewing Examiners regularly. Thomas began his career as a scientist in the drug discovery and development department at AstraZeneca R&D in Waltham, Massachusetts.
Area of Practice
- Intellectual Property
- Technology Transactions
Technologies
- Polymers
- New Materials
- Small-Molecule Pharmaceuticals
- Synthetic Biology
- Cosmetics
- Respiratory Care and Ventilation Technology
- Personal Care and Skin Care
- Medical Devices
- Petroleum and Chemical Products
- Nanotechnology
- Drug Discovery and Development
Admissions
- Licensed in Minnesota
- Licensed to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
- American Chemical Society
- German Chemical Society (GDCh)
Education
- D. (Organic and Medicinal Chemistry), University of Houston, TX, 2002
- D., The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law, Washington, D.C. 2010
- Chem., Universität des Saarlandes, Germany, 1997
Publications
- Co-inventor of “Oxazolidinone and/or Isooxazoline derivatives as Antibacterial Agents” International Patent Appl. Pub. # WO 2004/048392 A1
- Co-inventor of “Novel Rho Inhibitors” International Patent Appl. Pub. # WO 2004/004464 A1
- First Author of “Metals in Rho-mediated processes: New leads for drug discovery”, Biochemistry 42, (2002), 9121-9126
- First Author of “Metal Dependency for Transcription Factor Rho Activation” Biochemistry 42, (2002), 1652-1659
- First Author of “The Mg2+ Requirements for Rho Transcription Termination Factor: Catalysis and Bicyclomycin Inhibition” Biochemistry 41, (2002), 12377-12383