Page 25 - Innovation Delaware 2019

WHY DELAWARE?
#DELAWARECONNECTED
Connections are easy in Delaware’s tight-knit community of innovators, where startup founders rub shoulders with industry leaders and policymakers. Here’s a story of a connection that made a difference:
WHO: Dr. Benjamin Chien, CEO, QPS Holdings LLC
CONNECTION: Mike Bowman, President, Delaware Technology Park WHAT HAPPENED: After receiving
a Ph.D. in analytical chemistry from the University of Michigan, Chien joined DuPont Merck Pharmaceuticals in Wilmington in the early 1990s
and stayed for about 2 1/2 years,
says Ben Hsu, chief administrative
officer of QPS Holdings LLC. While at
DuPont Merck, Chien started a liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry
lab, which he used to help colleagues
in the discovery, preclinical and
clinical departments. “I realized I
could use this innovative technology
to serve many more others by starting
a company of my own,” says Chien.
Chien founded his own bioscience
company, then called Quest
Pharmaceutical Services LLC, at
Delaware Technology Park in 1995. The company had two employees at the time. The favorable rent, facility management and other support provided by the Tech Park gave QPS the financial flexibility it needed to grow, says Hsu. “Mike always tried to find space for us to accommodate our growth needs. He also sometimes coordinated and moved people around to help us,” says Chien. In addition, Bowman would also
BENJAMIN CHIEN
introduce Chien to potential collaborators, including vendors and state officials.
SINCE THEN: QPS is still located at the Tech Park, but has grown into a global contract research organization that supports the development of new drugs, with subsidiaries in The Netherlands, Austria, Taiwan and India. “QPS Delaware right now is just shy of 300 employees, and globally we are very close to just about 1,200,” says Hsu. “We have active clients anywhere from 600 to 800.”
The state also has a business-centric legal community, including a judiciary known internationally for its legal analysis, she says. “It has a sophisticated bar of lawyers skilled in every aspect of the law. An innovator or entrepreneur would need [their service] for a new and growing business.”
SECURING INNOVATIONS
One of Richards Layton’s areas of expertise is in intellectual property (IP) and patents. The firm has served as lead
or Delaware counsel in many large-scale patent or trademark infringement matters, and has been ranked “Tier 1” by U.S. News & World Report in the Patent Law and
Litigation – Patent categories since 2011. “We can also provide advice to an
innovator company’s board of directors on such topics as fiduciary duties, independence and the business judgment rule,” Damon says.
With many of the world’s leading companies headquartered in Delaware,
a thriving industry of experts in IP and patent law has emerged over the decades. As well as being the state with the most patents per capita in the U.S., Delaware is also one of the country’s busiest venues for patent litigation. In fact, a report
by litigation-research company Lex Machina found that between June 2017 and June 2018, 23% of all U.S. patent
infringement filings happened in the District of Delaware.
In addition to Richards Layton, powerhouse law firms in the IP and patent space include Potter Anderson Corroon LLP, which has represented Amazon
and Barnes & Noble in patent cases, and Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor LLP, which publishes the Delaware IP Law Blog (www.delawareiplaw.com).
For innovators at the University of Delaware and beyond, UD’s Office of Economic Innovation and Partnerships (OEIP) provides invaluable advice and support on copyrights, patents and trademarks. (For more on OEIP, see Q&A, page 24.)
INNOVATION DELAWARE 23
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