Kristen C. Buteau

Co-Chair - Patent and Intellectual Property

Kristen Buteau, co-chair of Choate’s Patent and Intellectual Property Practice Group, whose practice is complemented by her years of experience as a research scientist in the pharmaceutical industry, assists pharmaceutical and biotech companies in the strategic development of patent portfolios and product lifecycle management. She advises clients in all areas of drug discovery, from proof-of-concept through drug design, development, and product launch. She manages global patent portfolios for sophisticated pharmaceutical companies, while facilitating investment acquisitions and licensing through due diligence and freedom-to-operate analyses.

Kristen also works with universities and research institutions to provide focused patent protection for innovative discoveries.

Recognition

  • The Legal 500 (2022-2023)
  • Massachusetts Super Lawyers: “Rising Star” (2017 – 2020)
  • Best Lawyers in America: “Ones to Watch” (2021-2024)
  • Massachusetts Super Lawyers (2023)

Representative Engagements

  • Advises clients on worldwide portfolio management and filing strategies.
  • Counsels start-up clients on developing IP strategies and portfolio creation.
  • Assists clients in determining inventorship of patents/applications.
  • Conducts freedom-to-operate and competitive landscape analyses.
  • Prepares applications for Hatch-Waxman patent term extensions.
  • Developed IP protection strategies for a venture-backed company focused on disease-modifying therapeutics for treating neurological diseases by preventing axonal degeneration.
  • Represents clients in the preparation and prosecution of patent applications directed to treatment of oncology and autoimmune diseases, with a particular focus on kinase inhibitors.
  • Conducted IP due diligence in support of Tesaro’s in-licensing and prosecution of a patent estate protecting rolapitant, a novel NK1 antagonist now approved for the treatment and prevention of delayed nausea and vomiting associated with repeated courses of emetogenic cancer chemotherapy.
  • Represented Tesaro during IP due diligence in support of its $87 million initial public offering.
  • Represented Tesaro in several rounds of follow-on financing, totaling more than $400 million.
  • Represented Celgene Corporation in IP due diligence in support of its $1.1 billion acquisition of Impact Biomedicines.
  • Momenta v. Amphastar et al., D. Mass.: Represented Momenta Pharmaceuticals in a patent infringement action relating to innovative methods of processing therapeutic polysaccharides.
  • Children’s Medical Center Corporation v. Celgene Corporation, D. Mass.: Represented Celgene Corporation in a breach of contract litigation regarding exclusive license agreement related to Revlimid and Pomalyst.

Publications and Presentations

  • “Exploring the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA): Is it Patent Reform?,” moderator, Consero IP Forum for Life Sciences, December 2023.
  • “Mastering the Art of ‘Tooting Your Own Horn’: Valuable Tools for Self-Marketing as a Woman in the Life Sciences Industry and Being Your Own Best Advocate,” panelist, ACI Women Leaders in Life Sciences Law Virtual Conference, November 2020.
  • “Raising the Stakes in Patent Cases,” panelist, BIO IPCC Fall Conference, November 2018.
  • “The design, synthesis and structure-activity relationships of novel isoindoline-based histone deacetylase inhibitors,” co-author, Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters.
  • “Deuterated Drugs: Unexpectedly Nonobvious?,” author, Journal of High Technology Law.

Professional and Community Involvement

  • Member of the American Chemical Society
  • Member of the Boston Patent Law Association

Education & Credentials

Suffolk University Law School
JD, 2010, Intellectual Property, magna cum laude, with distinction
Northeastern University
MS, 2005
Chemistry
Boston University
BA, 2000
Chemistry

Admissions

Massachusetts

U.S. Patent & Trademark Office

Kristen 's Insights