When clients need help with the intellectual property underpinning today’s lifesaving advances in medicine, Tianran (T.R.) Yan leverages his scientific background to advise on effectively managing their innovations. As the chair of the firm’s Chemical, Biotechnology & Pharmaceutical Practice, T.R. plays a critical role in helping shape the firm’s strategy at the intersection of the Health Care & Life Sciences and Innovative Technology sectors.

His education in biochemistry, molecular genetics, and biotechnology combined with legal acumen enables an invaluable understanding of new technologies and their impact on the marketplace.

T.R. assists clients with intellectual property (IP) strategies, including patent prosecution and counseling, due diligence investigation, patent portfolio management, patent enforcement and licensing, freedom-to-operate investigation, and patent validity and infringement analyses. One particular area of focus is post-grant proceedings, where he has successfully represented clients in patent reexamination, reissue, and inter partes review (IPR) proceedings.

Examples of clients working on groundbreaking technologies include those developing CRISPR genome editing, mRNA medicine, liquid biopsy, next-generation sequencing (NGS), therapeutic antibodies, engineered cell therapy, and regenerative medicine.

Outside of patents, T.R. has also represented clients in IP due diligence investigations by performing reviews for IP licenses, IP portfolio sales, corporate financing, investments, mergers, and acquisitions.

Augmenting his practice, T.R. is a native speaker of Mandarin Chinese and has extensive experience counseling Asian technology companies on strategic IP development and transactions in connection with their operation in the U.S. market.

闫天然先生是美国富理达律师事务所 (Foley & Lardner LLP) 华盛顿特区办公室的资深知识产权律师。闫律师专注于协助客户制定和实施全球范围的知识产权的保护战略。他在以下方面拥有丰富经验：美国及国际专利的申请和审查、专利纠纷解决和技术许可、尽职调查、专利组合管理、技术自由实施以及专利有效性和侵权的分析。

闫律师是富理达律师事务所生命科学行业团队及化学、生物技术和制药业务组的成员。他在广泛的科技领域为客户提供法律咨询，包括 CRISPR 基因编辑、液体活检、高通量测序、双特异性和多特异性抗体、蛋白降解靶向嵌合体(PROTAC)、单细胞测序和分析、离体和体内细胞工程、以及干细胞和再生医学。

闫律师对于知识产权许可和销售、企业融资、投资、兼并和收购等方面的尽职调查有丰富的经验。他曾代表众多国际客户对美国科技企业进行知识产权尽职调查。闫律师曾于2014年合著《知识产权尽职调查：如何在交易中评估资产》 (Due Diligence for Intellectual Property: Valuing Assets in a Transaction, Chapter 2: Patents, Law Journal Press, 2014)。

闫律师积极参与富理达中国业务的拓展，并协助众多中国科技企业进入美国市场以及处理美国市场的法律事务。

专业认可

闫律师入选《法律500强》在知识产权: 专利 (包括复审和授权后无效程序) 领域的全美国“最佳下一代律师”   名单。

教育背景

闫律师先后毕业于中国中山大学 (2004年获理学学士)，美国伊利诺伊大学 (2006年获理学硕士)，和芝加哥肯特法学院 (2009年获法学博士，并担任 《芝加哥肯特法律评论》编辑)。

职业资格

闫律师是美国华盛顿特区和伊利诺伊州的注册律师，并持有美国专利商标局的注册执照。