Barnes & Thornburg has added Matthew S. Gibson as a partner in the Intellectual Property Department in its Dallas office. He is the seventh addition to the Intellectual Property Department this year, and his move follows on the heels of Jerry Harris’ addition to the group in Dallas in August. Gibson comes to the firm from Reed Smith LLP in Dallas.

Gibson is a patent attorney and handles the many aspects of patent portfolios and litigation on behalf of his life sciences clients. On the litigation side, Gibson counsels defendants and plaintiffs, and handles matters in front of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, including inter partes review proceedings. On the counseling side, he handles patent portfolio management, including initial development, prosecution and assessing portfolios in companies his clients’ are looking to acquire. He also handles negotiations in licensing agreements, due diligence related to initial public offerings, trade secrets matters and a variety of trademark matters.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Matthew,” said Julia Gard, chair of the firm’s Intellectual Property Department. “His background in cell biology and deep technical knowledge of some of our clients’ most complicated products and service lines makes him an invaluable resource as they look to protect those assets.”

Gibson counsels life sciences and technology companies, including those in the biotech, medical device, energy, chemical engineering and pharmaceutical sectors. He also counsels higher education institutions on their patent applications and intellectual property policies.

“Matthew’s network across the state and his experience in life sciences in particular is a great match for our office and the firm,” said Mark Bayer, Dallas office managing partner. “Adding Matthew and Jerry to our skilled team of Mark Nelson, Juanita DeLoach and Danny Valenzuela gives us a formidable presence in Dallas – backed up by more than 100 IP attorneys firmwide.”

Gibson earned his J.D. from the University of Oklahoma College of Law, his Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma, and his B.S. from Oklahoma Christian University.

With more than 700 attorneys and other legal professionals, Barnes & Thornburg is one of the largest law firms in the country. The firm serves clients worldwide from offices in Atlanta, California, Chicago, Delaware, Indiana, Michigan, Minneapolis, New York, Ohio, Raleigh, Salt Lake City, Texas and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit us online at www.btlaw.com or on Twitter @BTLawNews.