Karthika’s practice involves all aspects of technology law with an emphasis on the protection, acquisition, and monetization of intellectual property. She advises clients on patent and transactional matters in the healthcare and energy sectors across a wide range of technologies, such as biotechnology, biomedical devices, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, oil and gas processing, and software. She leverages her background in scientific research and technology transfer to help clients meet their business objectives at every stage of product development.
Karthika handles a variety of transactions, including multiparty collaborations, joint ventures, manufacturing, supply, distribution, and software development, service, and support agreements. She has developed commercialization strategies for several technologies and participated in the structuring and financing of six startup companies for various pharmaceutical, medical device, and medical informatics products. She was also involved in biological research projects and has published several articles in peer reviewed journals.
Karthika is a Certified Licensing Professional (CLP), the current President of Licensing Executives Society (LES) USA & Canada, and she has written extensively on IP licensing issues. She has been recognized by Texas Super Lawyers® as a Rising Star in Intellectual Property for 2018-2022. She was the recipient of the 2022 Excellence in Diversity Award from the Houston Intellectual Property Law Association.
Presentations
- Just for Startups: Licensing from a University & University IP Policy Basics, From Idea to Startup hosted by NUTech Ventures, June 28, 2023.
- Panelist, What the Tech? The Future of Medical Device Predictive Analytics & Big Data, Womble Bond Dickinson Thought Leadership Event, February 24, 2022.
- Regulatory Guidance: Start to Finish, Mayo Clinic's Symposium on Regenerative Medicine and Surgery, November 5, 2021.
- Authorship vs. Inventorship, and Patenting in the Life Sciences, Innovation Partners at Texas A&M University, October 29, 2021.
- Growing the Intellectual Property Portfolio for Your Canna-biz, Womble Bond Dickinson’s Seed to Sale Webinar Series, September 28, 2021.
- Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics – New Frontiers in Product Development in the Life Sciences Sector, Licensing Executives Society Annual Meeting, September 27, 2021.
- Intellectual Property: Protecting Innovation at the Intersection of Artificial Intelligence and Life Sciences, Womble Bond Dickinson's Everything from Everywhere Virtual Summit, January 29, 2021.
- Licensing: COVID-19 Impact, 58th Annual Conference On Intellectual Property Law, Institute for Law and Technology, November 9, 2020.
- Licensing Agreements and Patent Exhaustion, Tennessee Intellectual Property Law Association, November 6, 2020.
- IP & Licensing Basics Course, Licensing Executives Society, UT Health Science Center, San Antonio, Texas, April 2019.
- Madey, Myriad, Mayo, and Mohawk Tribe: Understanding court decisions that have shaped technology transfer and academic licensing, Licensing Executives Society Annual Meeting, October 2018.
- Navigating Federal Funding and Sovereign Immunity Issues with University Enterprises, Minority IP Lawyers Association, Houston, Texas, May 2018.
- Ethics and Privilege in Intellectual Property Law, Association of Corporate Counsel - Houston IP Practice Group, May 2017.
- Slow Repeal of the Affordable Care Act (‘ACA’) and What Does that Mean for the Pharmaceutical and Biotech Industries, Licensing Executives Society 2017 Spring Meeting, May 2017.
- Disruptive Models in Fostering Healthcare Innovation, Licensing Executives Society Annual Meeting, October 2016.
- Moonshots – Accelerated New Drug and Vaccine Developments, Licensing Executives Society 2016 Spring PanAm Meeting, April 2016.
- Patent Eligible Subject Matter Post Mayo and Alice, 29th Annual Course in Advanced Intellectual Property Law, State Bar of Texas, February 2016.
- Pursuing an Intellectual Property Career, 2015 Annual Presidential Career Symposium, Texas Medical Center, February 2015.
- How to Protect Trade Secrets Internally, Licensing Executives Society Annual Meeting, October 2014.
- Winning Negotiations Through Practice, Licensing Executives Society Annual Meeting, October 2014.
- A Myriad of Issues to Consider in the Wake of Myriad, Texas CEO Magazine, November 2013.
- Section 101 and Biotechnological Innovations, 29th Annual Institute on Intellectual Property Law, Houston Intellectual Property Law Association and the University of Houston Law Center, September 2013.
- Texas Puts its Lone-Star Spin on Trade Secret Protection, IP Today, May 24, 2013.
- Batting Practice with DNA Patents at the U.S. Supreme Court, IP Today, April 19, 2013.
- On Remand, Federal Circuit Spreads Mayo on Myriad, Westlaw Journal Intellectual Property, September 2012.
Honors and Awards
Selected to the Texas Rising Stars list by Super Lawyers (Thomson Reuters) in Intellectual Property, 2018 – 2021
Experience
Any result the lawyer or law firm may have achieved on behalf of clients in other matters does not necessarily indicate similar results can be obtained for other clients.
- Prepare and prosecute patent and trademark applications relating biological compositions and processes involving nucleic acids, antibodies, cell lines, and pharmaceutical formulations for medical research and development institutions
- Prepare and prosecute patent and trademark applications relating to drilling compositions, petroleum products and processes, and software in refinery operations for oil and gas companies
- Structure legal instruments to meet business objectives for several product lines, including licensing agreements, corporate partnering and joint ventures arrangements, sales and distribution agreements, master services agreements, and other commercial agreements for publicly traded and privately held companies.
- Perform due diligence reviews in connection with financing and acquisition transactions, including multinational energy companies, electronics consumer product companies, an alternative fuel company, and an animal health company
- Assisted with the structuring and negotiating of master services agreements for business process and information technology outsourcing
- Draft and negotiate licensing and joint development agreements and sales and distribution agreements for several biologic companies
- Assisted companies with trade secret identification and management programs, including drafting trade secret policies, preparing and conducting policy trainings, providing valuation of trade secret portfolios, and assisting with trade secret inventory management.
- Advised clients on funding instruments with US federal agencies and ongoing compliance with laws and regulations applicable to entities receiving federal grants and contracts.
- Represented the client, a biotechnology research firm, in a patent suit against Illumina in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington; assisted in preparation of infringement and validity expert reports, prepared expert witnesses for depositions and trial, assisted in taking and defending numerous individual and corporate representative depositions, managed the document review team, drafted Daubert motions for summary judgment, and prepared various pretrial and trial documents. Verdict awarded "National Law Journal Top 100 Verdicts of 2013."
