Christopher Southgate
Patent Counsel
Massachusetts
MA, DC
About
I bring a distinctive combination of scientific and legal experience to every client matter. Before practicing law, I spent approximately 10 years conducting molecular biology research at leading institutions, including Harvard University, Harvard… read more Medical School, Tufts University School of Medicine, and the University of Massachusetts Medical School. I earned a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from the University of Zürich before later obtaining a J.D. from the Washington College of Law at American University.
experience
Representative Clients
Practice Areas
Client Reviews
"It is my great pleasure to write this recommendation for Chris who worked closely with my team at PTC Therapeutics during the past three years. I have been very impressed with Chris’ work ethic, enthusiasm about science, and expertise on intellectual property. He has helped my team submit three patent applications and analyzed numerous IP landscapes on treatment development for various disease indications. He is not only knowledgeable about IP and insightful in science, but also a wonderful team player and an easygoing colleague. Whenever we had IP questions, we never hesitated to go to him and he always gave us accurate answers with thorough analyses in a timely manner. He actively participated in our team meetings, listened to our presentations, asked intelligent questions and gave us helpful suggestions on our projects. I was always amazed by how efficient he was in drafting our patent applications. It is no exaggeration that he is the best patent counsel I have ever worked with during my career. I am sure he will be a valuable asset to any organization who hires him."
"Chris has been an invaluable partner for IP portfolio development and strategy. He brings a unique combination of technical and landscape expertise to the table, with the years of in-depth knowledge that are needed in our specialized field. Always a pleasure to work with."
Work History
Creative Claims IP PLLC
Principal
Jul 2026 - Present
Creative Claims IP provides focused patent, trademark, trade secret, and IP due diligence services for biotech and life sciences companies, investors, and other innovation-driven clients.
Johnson Marcou Isaacs & Nix
Of Counsel
Dec 2024 - Dec 2025
• Managed worldwide prosecution of a complex docket of 30+ patent families for Broad Institute/MIT/Harvard, coordinating with foreign counsel across up to 15 jurisdictions, including EP, JP, CA, and CN.
• Prepared patent applications on novel gene editing techniques, immunotherapy, transposases, recombineering genetic engineering methods, and AAV capsid variants.
PTC Therapeutics
Director, Patent Counsel
Jan 2020 - Dec 2023
Led IP strategy, patent filings, and prosecution for 10 AAV gene therapy programs, including traditional gene replacement, recombinant antisense U7 snRNA gene therapy, inducible transgene expression platforms, and AAV manufacturing.
Conducted and delivered FTO, patent landscape, and patentability assessments for R&D, BD, and executive teams.
Gearhart Law
Of Counsel
May 2018 - Dec 2019
Assisted stem cell therapy, gene therapy, and drug delivery clients with patent strategy, preparation, and prosecution.
Delivered high-quality, comprehensive freedom-to-operate and landscape analyses and opinions.
Boston Biomedical
Senior Patent Attorney
Apr 2016 - Aug 2017
• Prepared and filed patent applications, managed worldwide prosecution of patent applications on methods of treating cancer with STAT3 inhibitors, cancer stemness kinase inhibitors, cancer stem cell biomarkers, targeted aiRNA therapies, X-ray crystallography of small molecule drugs bound to target proteins, and stem cell assays.