Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney Adds Prominent IP, Pharma and Biotech Lawyer Christine Hansen in Wilmington

November 7, 2012 – Wilmington, DE – Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC, a national law firm with 450 lawyers and government relations professionals, announced today that Christine M. Hansen, one of the region’s top intellectual property lawyers in the areas of pharmaceuticals and life sciences, has joined the firm as a shareholder in its Wilmington office.

Hansen, who was a partner at Connolly Bove Lodge & Hutz LLP where she focused on patent procurement and licensing for the past 13 years, brings the firm’s Intellectual Property Section headcount up to 54 firmwide.

“The sophisticated IP knowledge and highly specialized chemical, biotech and pharmaceutical experience Chris brings to the firm complements our already deep bench,” stated Buchanan’s CEO and Managing Shareholder Jack Barbour.

Among the types of matters Hansen has handled, she has served as a major go-to counselor for large pharmaceutical clients and has directed the US patent prosecution for a blockbuster drug with annual US sales of $500 million. She has also directed US due diligence in a biotech client investment in excess of $20 million. In 2011, Hansen was named a Top Patent Prosecutor by Patent Research Review.

“I’m excited to add to Buchanan’s broad reach in providing IP services,” said Hansen. “The firm’s depth of technical support for lawyers who specialize in the chemical, biotech and life sciences industries combined with its major patent practice, specialized FDA group and regulatory expertise were all compelling factors in my decision,” she added.

Hansen has more than 20 years of experience in sophisticated chemical, biotechnology and pharmaceutical matters, with in-depth knowledge of global patent prosecution issues and U.S. patenting procedures. She represents clients in a variety of areas including patent counseling and opinions, due diligence, licensing and transactions, interferences, prosecution and reissue and reexaminations in biotechnology and chemical matters.

Hansen has managed international patent portfolios, counseled on licensing matters and organized patent due diligence for technology licensing. She has also argued appeals before the United States Patent and Trademark Office Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences. Early in her career, she worked extensively on several patent trials, including a patent jury trial. She also served as corporate patent counsel at the pharmaceutical company Rhone-Poulenc Rorer Inc. (now Sanofi).

Hansen received her J.D. degree, cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania School of Law. She attended Philipps-Universitaet in Germany, where she was a Fulbright Scholar studying organic chemistry and molecular biology, and she received her A.B. degree in chemistry from Princeton University, as a National Merit Scholar. She is fluent in German.

About the Firm
Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC (www.bipc.com) has more than 450 attorneys and government relations professionals practicing throughout the United States, with offices in California, Delaware, Florida, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington, D.C.

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