Denali Therapeutics · 8 hours ago
Executive Director, Intellectual Property (IP) Counsel
South San Francisco, CA
Full-time
Onsite
Director/Executive
$312K/yr - $359K/yr
15+ years expDenali Therapeutics is a biotechnology company dedicated to developing breakthrough therapies for neurodegenerative diseases. The Executive Director will oversee all aspects of Denali’s intellectual property, lead the IP Legal team, and build Denali’s growing Legal team and strategy.
BiotechnologyGeneticsHealth DiagnosticsTherapeutics
Responsibilities
Lead the creation, development, and execution of strategies for Denali’s patent and trademark portfolios, copyrights, trade secrets, and other intellectual property matters, including partnering with the Discovery, Development, Manufacturing and Technical Operations, and Commercial functions to protect Denali’s inventions through patent portfolios, ensure freedom to operate, and proactively communicate strategies and progress updates to Denali’s teams and Leadership
Lead and mentor a high-functioning IP Legal team, including creating team organization and function strategy, managing resource allocation and the IP Legal budget, and creating and delivering regular reports on team progress
Lead direct report(s) through annual goal setting, growth planning, adherence to company policies, maintain training compliance and provide ongoing feedback on growth, development and areas of improvement
Develop strategic guidance on IP transactional matters to facilitate and support the goals of the Business Development, Contracts, and Alliance Management teams, which may include all aspects of IP transactional work, such as reviewing, drafting, and negotiating IP-related terms in confidentiality, material transfer, collaboration, and licensing agreements, advising on terms of strategic alliances, performing diligence for in-licensing opportunities, and building diligence and facilitating out-licensing opportunities
Partner with our Finance and Corporate Legal teams in the preparation, review, and filing of securities filings, including creating and developing disclosure strategies for Denali’s data, drafting and reviewing IP Legal disclosures and risk factors in securities filings, and facilitating the due diligence process related to corporate financings
Counsel teams and leadership at our South San Francisco, Salt Lake City, and Zurich sites, in aggressively building and defending Denali’s IP rights worldwide, including strategies for Denali’s patent portfolio and Denali’s competitiveness and freedom to operate for our platform and products, which may include oppositions, inter-parte reviews, and IP-related litigation
Build and manage Denali’s partnerships with law firms to foster long-term relationships and prioritize and focus work done externally, so that Denali achieves high-quality and cost-effective legal results
Participate in the Legal Leadership Team by facilitating cross-functional communication, helping the Legal team grow and improve, keep the team informed of legal developments, and build and maintain a broad network of industry and government relationships
Qualification
Required
J.D. degree and a graduate degree in a life sciences discipline
15+ years of experience in patent portfolio preparation, prosecution, licensing, defense, and enforcement, with substantive experience with protein and large molecule based therapeutic discovery, development, and commercialization
Advanced knowledge of domestic and international intellectual property laws, regulations, and processes relating to patents
Self-motivated, creative, and solution-oriented work ethic, while maintaining good attention to detail
Able to create and prepare presentations, communicate clearly to teams and Leadership, and lead a team's execution of intellectual property strategies
Able to foster good risk taking, and enjoys working in an international, fast-paced environment
Willingness to work collaboratively by incorporating diverse perspectives and appropriately managing relationships with internal partners and teams, and build relationships with external collaborators, industry leaders, and government officials
Experience building and mentoring experienced IP legal professionals
Active registration in good standing to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Active member in good standing of at least one state bar
Preferred
Significant experience in both a law-firm and in-house setting
Benefits
401k
Healthcare coverage
ESPP
A broad range of other benefits
Company
Denali Therapeutics
Denali Therapeutics is dedicated to defeating neurodegenerative diseases to deliver safe and effective medicines to patients and families.
501-1000 employees
Funding
Current Stage
Public CompanyTotal Funding
$1.32BKey Investors
Royalty PharmaBaillie Gifford
2025-12-04Post Ipo Debt· $200M
2024-02-27Post Ipo Equity· $500M
2022-10-19Post Ipo Equity· $275M
Leadership Team
Ryan Watts
CEO
Peter Chin
Sr. Vice President & Head of Late-Stage Clinical Development and Medical Affairs
Recent News
2026-01-11
Longevity.Technology
2026-01-03
Company data provided by crunchbase