Guardant Health · 9 hours ago
Patent Litigation Counsel
Palo Alto, CA
Full-time
Onsite
Senior Level
$190K/yr - $261K/yr
5+ years expGuardant Health is a leading precision oncology company focused on guarding wellness and giving every person more time free from cancer. They are seeking an experienced Patent Litigation Counsel to manage and execute their patent dispute and enforcement strategy in the cancer diagnostics space.
BiotechnologyHealth CareHealth DiagnosticsOncologyTherapeutics
Responsibilities
Lead and manage U.S. and international patent litigations, pre‑litigation disputes, and other contentious matters (including PTAB proceedings), from early case assessment through trial and appeal
Develop and drive case strategies that reflect both the nuances of Guardant’s technologies and broader business objectives
Oversee all aspects of litigation, including pleadings, motion practice, discovery, claim construction, expert work, deposition prep and trial prep; work closely with fact and expert witnesses, internal business stakeholders, and outside counsel
Conduct and supervise detailed infringement, non‑infringement, validity, and enforceability analyses with a focus on NGS‑based diagnostics, bioinformatics pipelines, and cancer genomics platforms
Collaborate with scientists, engineers, clinical, regulatory, and commercial teams to understand Guardant’s products, R&D roadmap, and competitors’ products, and to translate technical concepts into compelling litigation positions
Partner with leadership across Legal, R&D, Product, and Business teams to provide strategic IP risk counseling for product launches, marketing claims, and competitive positioning
Manage and coordinate outside counsel, including staffing, budgets, and performance to ensure high‑quality and cost‑effective representation
Assist with portfolio‑related enforcement strategy (e.g., assertion programs, notice letters, and settlement structures) in coordination with the broader IP and business teams
Maintain and share up‑to‑date understanding of competitive IP landscapes in oncology diagnostics and related technologies
Support IP aspects of strategic transactions, including M&A due diligence, collaborations, and licensing deals
Advise on IP licensing, settlement, and other deal structures in the context of disputes and strategic partnerships
Provide freedom‑to‑operate (FTO) counseling and risk assessments for new products, features, and geographies
Qualification
Required
Juris Doctorate from a nationally accredited law school
Member in good standing of at least one U.S. state bar; registration with the USPTO is optional
5+ years of patent litigation experience at a leading law firm and/or in‑house legal department, with a focus on life sciences, medical devices, diagnostics, or biotechnology
Meaningful trial experience, including participation in key trial phases (e.g., opening/closing, witness examinations, argument of substantive motions) in U.S. district court and/or PTAB proceedings; first‑chair experience a strong plus
Technical background enabling strong understanding of Guardant's technology; an advanced degree in Molecular Biology, Bioinformatics, Computational Biology, Cancer Genomics, Genetics, Statistics, or a related field is strongly preferred
Familiarity with technologies used in cancer diagnostics and NGS‑based assays, such as: Methods for analyzing genomic data from diagnostic NGS assays; Library preparation methods (e.g., targeted sequencing, whole‑genome sequencing, methylation sequencing, RNA‑seq); Algorithms and tools used in cancer genomics (e.g., sequence alignment, variant calling)
Demonstrated ability to work closely and credibly with scientists, engineers, and business leaders, and to explain complex technical and legal concepts to non‑lawyers
Excellent written and oral advocacy skills, strong strategic and analytical thinking, and sound business judgment
Experience managing and collaborating with outside counsel effectively and efficiently
Adaptable, flexible, and comfortable operating in a fast‑paced, rapidly evolving environment as part of a highly collaborative team
Preferred
Technical background enabling strong understanding of Guardant's technology; an advanced degree in Molecular Biology, Bioinformatics, Computational Biology, Cancer Genomics, Genetics, Statistics, or a related field is strongly preferred
Familiarity with AI‑enabled tools for legal research, prior art searching, and competitive landscape analysis is a plus
Company
Guardant Health
Guardant Health is a precision oncology company that uses blood tests, data sets, and analytics to provide treatment to cancer patients.
1001-5000 employees
H1B Sponsorship
Guardant Health has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
Represents job field similar to this job
Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (38)
2024 (50)
2023 (40)
2022 (72)
2021 (57)
2020 (29)
Funding
Current Stage
Public CompanyTotal Funding
$2.53BKey Investors
Baillie GiffordSoftBank Vision FundOrbiMed
2025-11-05Post Ipo Equity· $284.4M
2025-11-05Post Ipo Debt· $350M
2023-12-21Post Ipo Equity· $90.7M
Leadership Team
AmirAli Talasaz
Co-founder and Co-Chief Executive Officer
Helmy Eltoukhy
Chairman and Co-Chief Executive Officer
Recent News
Medical Device Network
2026-01-20
2026-01-19
Company data provided by crunchbase