Vice President, Intellectual Property

Sumitomo Pharma•Marlborough, MA

9d•Remote

About The Position

Sumitomo Pharma Co., Ltd., is a global pharmaceutical company based in Japan with operations in the U.S. (Sumitomo Pharma America, Inc.), focused on addressing patient needs in oncology, urology, women's health, rare diseases, cell & gene therapies and CNS. With several marketed products and a diverse pipeline of early- to late-stage investigational assets, we aim to accelerate discovery, research, and development to bring novel therapies to patients sooner. This position reports to the Chief Legal Officer and is part of the Legal Department. The Vice President, Intellectual Property leads the IP function—setting patent, trademark, and trade secret strategy in partnership with the global IP team; and directing complex global patent litigation—and works closely with R&D, Business Development, Regulatory, Commercial, and global partners to ensure effective collaboration and alignment.

Requirements

J.D. from an accredited law school required; must be admitted and in good standing to at least one U.S. State Bar (or the District of Columbia Bar) and registered to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
Minimum 15+ years of progressive patent/IP law experience in the pharmaceutical/biotech industry, including substantial in-house experience.
Demonstrated experience leading an IP function and managing a team of attorneys and other professionals.
Deep experience across patent prosecution, patent litigation, and transactional IP.
Must maintain active membership in good standing with at least one U.S. State Bar and active registration to practice before the USPTO.
Fast-paced environment handling multiple demands is involved.
Must be able to exercise appropriate judgment as necessary.
Requires a high level of initiative and independence.
Excellent written and oral communication skills required.
Requires ability to use a personal computer for extended periods of time.
This position includes people‑management responsibilities, including day‑to‑day supervision, workload planning, and ensuring team members have the resources and support needed to succeed.

Nice To Haves

Advanced scientific degree strongly preferred (Ph.D. or M.S.) in chemistry, biology, biochemistry, or a related life-science field.
Experience supporting both small-molecule and cell therapy assets.
Prior experience advising executive leadership and boards on enterprise IP strategy and high-stakes transactions.
Demonstrated leadership in managing a team and working on a global scale.

Responsibilities

Lead and support the enterprise-wide intellectual property strategy for Sumitomo Pharma America, aligning global patent, trademark, and trade secret strategy with corporate priorities and pipeline assets.
Lead, and mentor the IP team and ensure high-quality work product, effective succession planning, and continued talent development.
Oversee complex patent litigation and adversarial proceedings setting strategy and managing outside counsel, budgets, and outcomes.
Advise executive leadership and cross-functional partners on all IP matters, including freedom-to-operate (FTO), patentability, inventorship, and portfolio exclusivity from patent, FDA regulatory, and antitrust considerations.
Support business development and corporate transactions, leading IP due diligence and negotiating IP terms for licensing, collaboration, asset acquisition/divestiture, and research agreements.
Partner with R&D to identify and protect new innovations, and counsel scientists and product teams on IP strategy and best practices.
Provide ongoing support to any relevant regulatory, development and commercial activities that may impact IP.
Provide transactional IP support across a range of agreements, including licensing, clinical trial, sponsored research, material transfer, CRO agreements, university licenses, and CDAs.
Support product lifecycle management.
Oversee management of the company’s trademark and domain portfolio and advise on copyright and related matters.
Establish IP policies, processes, and governance that scale with a growing organization and ensure consistent, high-quality execution.
Work closely with the AI governance committee to monitor and protect innovation that uses AI.
Manage the IP function’s budget and external counsel spend, ensuring efficient allocation of resources against business priorities.
Monitor U.S. and international IP developments and market developments, and advise leadership on changes that may impact the business.
Align U.S. IP priorities with global strategy, and follow escalation protocols, decision rights, and governance for material IP matters.