Palo Alto – July 20, 2015 – Cooley will be recognized by The American Lawyer at its third annual Global Legal Awards. According to American Lawyer Media, the contest attracted 225 entries across 30 categories. Cooley is being honored in the Commercial Arbitration category for its winning representation of Gilead Sciences in the lawsuit F. Hoffmann-La Roche (Roche) v. Gilead Sciences, Inc.
The lawsuit, brought by Roche, was over rights to Gilead's blockbuster hepatitis C drug, Sovaldi (sofosbuvir), worth many billions of dollars in annual sales. Roche was seeking exclusive ownership rights of Sovaldi in addition to hundreds of millions of dollars in damages. Following a two-week arbitration hearing, a panel of three arbitrators issued its award on August 15, 2014, ruling in favor of Gilead and finding that Roche failed to establish any of its claims. As a result, Roche was not entitled to any damages or other relief.
In addition to this recognition from The American Lawyer, Cooley's work for Gilead has been highlighted by The National Law Journal in Cooley's profile for the publication's annual "IP Hot List" and by The Recorder for its "IP Litigation Department of the Year" awards. Lead partner and Cooley chairman Steve Neal was also recognized in The American Lawyer's "Litigator of the Week" series and named a Law360 "Trial Ace" for spearheading the victory.
"We were deeply gratified to win this case for Gilead. The win helped protect and solidify Gilead's important and ongoing commitment to fighting Hepatitis C," said Neal. "We are honored to be receiving this recognition. We had an excellent team working on this case, including an invaluable multi-faceted trial support team."
The core team representing Gilead was comprised of Neal, fellow partners Marty Schenker, Michelle Rhyu and Jeffrey Karr; and associates Scott Sukenick, Susan Krumplitsch, Daniel Knauss, Jeff Walker, Jennifer Lerner, Lauren Pomeroy and David Houska.
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