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MoFo Life Sciences shares timely legal and business insights and in-depth analyses on trends and the complex technologies at the heart of the global pharmaceutical, biotechnology, diagnostics, medical devices, digital health, and AgTech fields.

March 02, 2021 - United States, European Union, Intellectual Property
Key EU Intellectual Property and Trade Secrets
By: Wolfgang Schönig and Mark L. Whitaker
Session 11 of the GSAS Harvard Biotech Club and Morrison & Foerster course on Legal Topics for Scientists, Entrepreneurs, and Start Ups was led by Life Sciences Transactions + Licensing partner Wolfgang Schoenig focusing on key EU Intellectual Property. Wolfgang discussed Intellectual Property Rights,
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March 01, 2021 - FDA, COVID-19, Rare Disease, Biotech, Healthcare, Pharma, Regulatory
Rare Disease: Sustained Progress in Development Regardless of the Pandemic
By: Catherine M. Polizzi Ph.D.
Sunday, February 28, 2021, was Rare Disease Day. With so much focus on COVID-19 throughout 2020, it’s important to recognize the continued work done in rare disease drug development by sponsors and FDA throughout 2020. In addition, a number of policies implemented in response
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February 26, 2021 - COVID-19, Litigation, Healthcare
Do You Have the COVID-19 Blues? Don’t Forget About Sunshine!
While the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) acknowledges the impact COVID-19 has had on the healthcare industry, CMS does not have the authority to postpone the deadline for Sunshine Act reporting. Accordingly, March 31, 2021, remains the deadline for reporting for 2020.
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February 26, 2021 - Medical Devices + Diagnostics, European Union, Regulatory
Software as a Medical Device in Europe – New Regulatory Regime About to Enter into Force – (Part 3 of 6)
By: Wolfgang Schönig, Stephan Kreß and Robert Grohmann
Having shed light on the relevance of the intended purpose of a medical device when determining whether software qualifies as medical devices software (“MDSW”) under the new EU Medical Device Regulation 2017/745 (“MDR”) in part 2 of our series of articles , in this
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February 24, 2021 - Medical Devices + Diagnostics, United Kingdom, Healthcare, Pharma, Regulatory
Life Sciences Regulatory Framework Becomes Law Post-Brexit
By: Jenny Galloway
Nearly one year after its introduction to the House of Commons, the Medicines and Medical Devices Bill 2019‑2021 (the Bill) was granted Royal Assent on 11 February 2021, becoming law as the Medicines and Medical Devices Act 2021 (the Act). The purpose of the Act is
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February 19, 2021 - Medical Devices + Diagnostics, European Union, Regulatory
Software as a Medical Device in Europe – New Regulatory Regime About to Enter into Force – (Part 2 of 6)
By: Wolfgang Schönig, Stephan Kreß and Robert Grohmann
In Part 2 of our series of consecutive articles on the reformed regulatory framework under the EU Medical Device Regulation 2017/745 (“MDR”), which will soon govern medical devices software (“MDSW”) in the EU, we will shed further light on the expansion of the definition
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February 12, 2021 - Medical Devices + Diagnostics, European Union, Regulatory
Software as a Medical Device in Europe – New Regulatory Regime About to Enter into Force – (Part 1 of 6)
By: Wolfgang Schönig, Stephan Kreß and Robert Grohmann
The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly accelerated the adoption of digital health and virtual care in Europe, as well as globally. Fueled by technological advancement, including in the space of data analytics and AI, this trend is likely to continue. As with every health-related product
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February 04, 2021 - United States, Litigation, Regulatory
EHR Vendor Settles Kickback Allegations to the Tune of $18.25 Million
On January 28, 2021, the United States’ Department of Justice (DOJ) announced an $18.25 million settlement with athenahealth Inc. (“Athena”) to resolve allegations that Athena violated the False Claims Act by paying impermissible kickbacks related to its electronic health records (EHR) product. At the
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January 27, 2021 - COVID-19, Employment
Podcast: COVID-19 Vaccines in the Workplace
By: Michael Ward Ph.D.
In this fifth episode of our podcast series on COVID-19, Michael Ward , MoFo partner and global head of the firm’s Life Sciences Group and Patent Group, discusses with Janie Schulman, employment and labor partner in our Los Angeles office as well as co-chair
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January 19, 2021 - Licensing + Commercial, United States, European Union
Top 10 Considerations When Drafting and Negotiating SRAs, with U.S. and EU Perspectives
By: Wolfgang Schönig, Matt Karlyn and Robert Grohmann
Sponsored Research Agreements (SRA) are used by companies to contract a research organization, such as a university, to conduct research and development activities in exchange for fees and the university’s rights to use the results for general research purposes. Care should be taken to
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