Associate IP Counsel - Cook Group

Cook is a privately owned, global company that has been, for over 60 years, inventing, manufacturing, and delivering a unique portfolio of medical devices to the healthcare systems of the world. Our Global Legal team is a diverse and dynamic team of attorneys who support the organization’s business functions located worldwide. Each member of the team has unique responsibilities and expertise, but every member shares the common objective of supporting Cook’s relentless pursuit of inventive solutions to help our customers, patients, and communities thrive.

We are seeking an energetic, versatile individual to join our Global Legal team full-time as Associate Intellectual Property Counsel. In this role, you will work collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams of scientists, engineers, and other professionals, in different clinical specialties, to capture and safeguard the company’s innovations and interests. This position may be remote (with occasional travel as needed) or hybrid (working on-site approximately 1 day a week in Bloomington, IN depending on business needs).

At Cook, it is our company culture to be open to different ideas and perspectives, and be appreciative of each person’s contributions. We want to create opportunities for talented individuals who will contribute to the company’s diversity. We are looking for the best candidate for the Associate IP Counsel role, and invite those to apply who can bring a diverse perspective to our team as a result of cultural fluency, resilience, or life experiences. 

What You’ll Do:

• Provide legal advice, support, and assistance relative to day-to-day management of Cook’s global intellectual property portfolio, including but not limited to inventions, patents, trade secrets, and trademark matters
• Support development and application of Cook’s global IP portfolio in collaboration with cross-functional stakeholders and in alignment with business goals and priorities
• Facilitate and support freedom-to-operate searches, and manage and review outside counsel’s freedom-to-operate searches and analyses
• Manage outside counsel who advise on IP matters
• Manage IP budget and spend relative to preparation and prosecution of US and foreign patent applications, and enforcement of global intellectual property rights
• Evaluate and provide legal advice on all aspects of Cook’s corporate IP practices
• Stay updated on relevant law, regulations and evolving developments in global IP law, providing legal advice to management and other attorneys and recommending policy and/or process changes as needed
• Develop and participate in education and training, ensuring appropriate employees and management are knowledgeable of pertinent standards, policies and laws

What You’ll Bring:

• 3+ years of IP legal experience, in a law firm, government, in-house, or a combination, preferably with significant experience handling patent preparation and prosecution, global portfolio management, and patentability and freedom-to-operate assessments; experience with U.S. and/or foreign adversarial proceedings (such as patent litigation, US post-grant proceedings, or European oppositions) and/or IP licensing and transactions is a plus
• J.D. from an ABA-accredited law school
• An active member in good standing of at least one state bar
• Admitted to practice and in good standing with the USPTO
• Background in life sciences or biomedical engineering preferred
• Ability to learn and actively role model the Cook Values, and a desire to make an impact as part of a company that is Relentlessly Inventive and Deeply Connected
• Effective verbal and written communication skills
• Ability to work across teams and manage multiple priorities to accomplish multiple tasks in a timely and cost-efficient manner
• Ability to work in collaborative and independent work situations and environments with minimal supervision
• Ability to establish and maintain effective relationships with others, whether internal or external to the organization, and throughout various levels of the global organization
• Foster and maintain a workplace culture respectful and supportive of individual differences
• Remain calm and receptive in fast paced situations
• Business-savvy and creative problem-solving skills
• Maintain the highest standards of confidentiality and integrity,
• Comply with the rules of professional conduct for attorneys, as required by the state of licensure
• Maintain company quality and quantity standards; regular and punctual attendance; strict adherence to safety requirements

What We Offer

• A closely collaborative and supportive team: You will not have to work in a silo; instead, you will be part of an encouraging and versatile team of attorneys who regularly collaborate with each other on diverse projects and a multitude of interesting problems
• Continuous training and mentorship: Training and day-to-day mentoring will be available to you, not only from your manager, but also from other attorneys on the Global Legal team
• Responsibilities from the beginning: You will be assigned specific clinical portfolios and responsibilities from the beginning, and be able to take ownership of your work from the get-go
• Competitive salary and benefits package

Minimum Work Experience/ Educational Requirements:

• J.D. from an ABA-accredited law school
• An active member in good standing of at least one state bar
• Admitted to practice and in good standing with the USPTO
• Background in life sciences or biomedical engineering preferred
• Intellectual property legal experience of 3+ years, in a law firm, government, in-house or a combination
• Experience with patent preparation and prosecution, global portfolio management, patentability and freedom-to-operate assessment
• Experience in U.S. and/or foreign adversarial proceedings (such as patent litigation, US post-grant proceedings, or European oppositions) is a plus
• Experience with IP licensing and transactions is a plus

Physical Requirements/Work Environment:

• General office conditions
• Sitting for extended periods, utilizes close visual acuity for working with computers, etc.
• Requires occasional early morning or late evening teleconferences
• Must be able to perform the essential functions of the job, with or without reasonable accommodations
• Remote or hybrid with occasional travel including domestic, international and weekends as needed