Associate General Counsel-IP Due Diligence

BioSpace; North Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical/dental/vision insurance

401(k) plan

Paid time off

Job summary

AbbVie seeks an in-house Associate General Counsel for IP Due Diligence to support M&A, licensing deals, option agreements, and venture transactions. Hybrid work is available across North Chicago, IL and other U.S. offices including Waltham, MA and CA locations.

The role leads comprehensive IP due diligence, assesses patent coverage and freedom-to-operate, and provides strategic IP counsel to business, R&D and commercial teams in a fast‑paced environment.

Qualifications

• JD degree from an accredited law school and USPTO registration as a patent attorney.
• Approximately 8 years of patent law experience in a law firm or life sciences company.
• Significant IP due diligence experience in pharma/biotech deals.
• Technical background in pharma or related sciences is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead and execute IP due diligence for M&A, licensing, option, and venture transactions.
• Assess patent coverage, freedom-to-operate, validity, and competitive landscape.
• Provide counsel to cross-functional teams on IP matters in transactions.
• Analyze third-party portfolios and conduct patent landscaping for risk/mitigation.
• Prepare due diligence reports and coordinate with external and internal teams.

Skills

IP due diligence

Patent law

M&A experience

Licensing negotiations

Cross-functional collaboration

Legal research

Negotiation

Strategic IP counsel

Education

Juris Doctor (JD)

Tools

USPTO registration

Patent landscape tools

Job description

About AbbVie

AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas including immunology, oncology and neuroscience - and products and services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us atwww.abbvie.com. Follow @abbvie onLinkedIn,Facebook,Instagram,XandYouTube.

Company Description

AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas including immunology, oncology and neuroscience - and products and services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us atwww.abbvie.com. Follow @abbvie onLinkedIn,Facebook,Instagram,XandYouTube.

Job Description

AbbVie is searching for an in-house Associate General Counsel for our IP Due Diligence group, part of AbbVies Intellectual Property, Transactions, and Innovation legal team. This position will support AbbVie's business development activities, including mergers and acquisitions, licensing deals, option agreements, and venture transactions, and will be based in our offices in North Chicago, IL, Waltham, MA, South San Francisco, CA, or Irvine, CA with a hybrid work model (on site 3+ days/week).

Acting individually and in cross-functional teams, the Associate General Counsel will lead and execute IP due diligence for business development transactions, assess intellectual property risk and opportunity across AbbVie's pipeline and target portfolios, and provide strategic IP counsel in support of AbbVie's M&A, licensing, option, and venture activities.

Responsibilities

• Lead and execute comprehensive IP due diligence for M&A, licensing, option, and venture transactions, assessing patent coverage, freedom-to-operate, validity, enforceability, and competitive landscape


• Provide legal advice and counsel to cross-functional business development, R&D, and commercial teams on IP matters arising in the context of transactions and strategic partnerships


• Analyze and assess third-party patent portfolios and competitive landscapes, including claim scope, prosecution history, litigation exposure, and conduct patent landscaping across counterparty portfolios or various mechanisms-of-action to identify strategic risks, white-space opportunities, and competitive intelligence insights in support of transaction structuring and risk mitigation


• Prepare and present clear, actionable due diligence reports and risk assessments to senior legal, business, and scientific stakeholders


• Partner with external counsel and internal scientific teams to conduct prior art searches, validity assessments, and freedom-to-operate analyses in support of transaction due diligence


• Lead and support negotiations in connection with licensing, M&A, option, and venture transactions, working closely with business development and legal colleagues


• Build and manage productive relationships with science, evaluation, and business development teams to ensure IP considerations are integrated throughout the deal lifecycle


• Interact regularly with IP team leadership to provide updates on transaction diligence activities, elevate key risks, and align on IP strategy


• Participate in technology assessment and cross-functional teams supporting R&D external opportunity diligence, evaluating the IP implications of in-licensing, co-development, and acquisition targets


• Support and, where appropriate, manage patent prosecution activities across a range of modalities, including complex and simple biologics, peptides, small molecule pharmaceuticals, or device-related inventions, coordinating with outside counsel and internal R&D teams to develop and execute prosecution strategies aligned with business objectives

Qualifications

• JD degree from an accredited law school, active state bar admission enabling in-house practice (specific state not required), and registration to practice before the USPTO as a patent attorney


• ~8 years of experience practicing patent law as a patent attorney at a law firm and/or life sciences company, with substantial experience conducting IP due diligence in a pharmaceutical or biotechnology context
  
  
  
  • Prior due diligence experience in simple biologics, complex biologics, peptides, and other small molecule pharmaceuticals
  
  
  • Experience with biosimilars or generics portfolios
  
  
  
  


• Technical background relevant for pharmaceutical IP due diligence, such as:
  
  
  
  • Experience with small molecule and/or biological pharmaceutical discovery & development, and/or
  
  
  • Technical degree in a relevant field, such as molecular biology, biotechnology, biochemistry, biology, chemistry, chemical engineering, or biomedical engineering
  
  
  
  


• Strong legal, analytical, communication, collaboration, and people skills


• Demonstrated ability to manage complex projects to meet deadlines

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior pharma or biotech due diligence experience in M&A, licensing, or option deal transactions


• Experience with biosimilars or generic pharmaceutical patent portfolios


• Experience advising on venture transactions or strategic collaborations with IP components

Additional Information

• The compensation range described below is the range of possible base pay compensation that the Companybelieves ingood faith it will pay for this role at the timeof thisposting based on the job grade for this position.Individualcompensation paid within this range will depend on many factors including geographic location,andwemayultimatelypaymore or less than the posted range. This range may bemodifiedin thefuture.


• We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off (vacation, holidays, sick),medical/dental/visioninsurance and 401(k) to eligibleemployees.


• This job is eligible toparticipatein our long-term incentiveprograms.

Note: No amount of payis considered to bewages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, anddeterminable.The amount and availability of any bonus,commission,incentive, benefits, or any other form ofcompensation and benefitsthat are allocable to a particular employeeremainsin the Company's sole andabsolutediscretion unless anduntil paid andmay bemodifiedat the Companys sole and absolute discretion, consistent withapplicable law.

AbbVie is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to operating with integrity, driving innovation, transforming lives and serving our community. Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled.

US & Puerto Rico only - to learn more, visithttps://www.abbvie.com/join-us/equal-employment-opportunity-employer.html

US & Puerto Rico applicants seeking a reasonable accommodation, click here to learn more:

https://www.abbvie.com/join-us/reasonable-accommodations.html