U.S. Attorney | U.S. Patent Attorney

EDUCATION AND ADMISSIONS

Dr. Ruppert studied biological sciences, with a focus on molecular biology, and received his doctorate from the Ruprecht-Karls University in Heidelberg, Germany. After years of successful research in Germany and the United States of America, Dr. Ruppert studied U.S. law at the University of California, Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco, California, U.S.A., where he earned a law degree.

Dr. Ruppert is a licensed attorney in California. There, he is authorized to represent clients in the following courts:

• Supreme Court of California
• United States Courts for the Ninth Circuit, Court Of Appeals (California)
• United States District Court for the Central District of California
• United States District Court for the Northern District of California

Dr. Ruppert is also a licensed United States Patent Attorney and is authorized to represent clients in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

AREAS OF PRACTICE

Dr. Ruppert focuses his practice on representing clients, including start-up companies, in patent prosecution, patent litigation, patent interference proceedings, licensing, and opinion work, all under U.S. law.

Scientific Work and Patents

Owing to his scientific experience, Dr. Ruppert is your contact in the fields of life sciences and biotechnology. After Dr. Ruppert successfully completed his research at the Ruprecht-Karls University in Heidelberg and at the University of California at Berkeley, he continued his scientific work as a group leader at the U.S. biotech company Genentech, Inc. His peer-reviewed scientific work resulted in about 40 publications in journals and textbooks.

As a scientist at the renowned University of California at Berkeley and at Genentech, Inc., the first biotech company in the U.S., Dr. Ruppert also gained his first experience with U.S. patents. Here, his scientific work, among others, led to three U.S. patents.

U.S. and Worldwide Patents

As a patent attorney at a prestigious U.S. law firm specializing in intellectual property law, as Special Counsel at a full-service AmLaw 100 firm, and as a partner in a multinational law firm based in Atlanta, U.S., Dr. Ruppert efficiently managed clients’ domestic and international patent portfolios, worked productively with clients’ patent departments (in-house counsel), and effectively represented established companies and start-ups in patent applications in the fields of pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, diagnostics, medical devices, and ultraviolet (UV) devices. A representative sample of issued U.S. patents on which Dr. Ruppert worked can be found here.

In addition, for obtaining international patent protection for his clients, Dr. Ruppert works  (worked) with foreign patent law firms, among others, in Australia, Canada, China, Europe, India, Japan, Mexico, Taiwan, South Africa, and Vietnam.

Exemplary Scientific Topics in Patents Worked on By Dr. Ruppert

Dr. Ruppert enjoys a broad scientific education and has extensive work and research experience in life sciences.  Accordingly, the topics Dr. Ruppert has described in patent applications are diverse.  Those, among others, include:

AIDS | algae | antibodies | antibody engineering | assays | biofuels | biomarkers | biomolecules | cancer | cDNA construction | cDNA library | cell biology | cell culture chemical compounds | cloning methods | diagnostics | devices | diseases | DNA | DNA sequencing | drug delivery | drug screening | gene detection | gene manipulation | genes | gene therapy | genomics | HIV | high-throughput screening | hybridization tests | immunology | irradiation | labeling methods | liposomes | medical devices | medical treatments | microbiota | microorganisms | mRNA | miRNA | molecular biology | mutagens | mutagenesis | nucleic acids | nucleic acid sequencing | nucleotide analogs | oligonucleotides | oncology | PCR | pharmaceuticals | probes | protein discovery | protein expression | protein purification | protein quantification | proteins | protein stability | protein structure | protein structure/function analysis | proteomics | recombinant DNA technology | RNA | shRNA | siRNA | small molecules | SNPs | stem cells | synthetic nucleic acids | therapeutics | transcription | transgenic mice | translation | treatment of diseases | UV devices | UV treatment | vectors | vaccines |

U.S. Patent Litigation

Dr. Ruppert, with a team consisting of U.S. attorneys, technical experts and, as appropriate, attorneys from the U.S. Department of Justice, has successfully represented in U.S. courts several clients in patent litigation matters.

U.S. Patent Interference

Dr. Ruppert, with a team consisting of U.S. attorneys, technical experts and, as appropriate, attorneys from the U.S. Department of Justice, has successfully represented in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office several clients in patent interference proceedings.

Legal Publications

Dr. Ruppert has published several legal papers on basics and approval of biosimilars – biological/medical compounds that are very similar to an already approved biological drug, called a “reference drug” or “innovator product,” and can be manufactured when the patents protecting the reference drug have expired.

Lectures and Seminars

Dr. Ruppert frequently lectures and gives legal seminars on various topics ranging from biosimilars to patentability of biological products and diagnostic methods. He gives his lectures in German and/or English. Clients may choose topics for the presentation from a list of topics provided by Dr. Ruppert. Here you will find a selection.