Meeting 1: 10:40AM - 11:00AM
Meeting 2: 11:05AM - 11:25PM
Peter Schedereit
Case Handler, DG Competition Unit E.1
European Commission
Due to be implemented across Member States by December 2026, the new EU Product Liability Directive (PLD) introduces a fundamental shift in life sciences legal risk, marked by potential reversals of the burden of proof onto defendants, expanded disclosure obligations and new limitation periods of up to 25 years. When coupled with other EU developments, including the growth of third-party litigation funding, these changes are expected to increase exposure to class actions and multiparty litigation, drive higher insurance costs and make the defence of product liability claims materially more complex for life sciences companies. This session will examine the key changes under the EU PLD and explore their implications for life sciences companies operating across Europe.
Simon Neill
Assistant General Counsel
Johnson & Johnson
Wouter Mooij
Dutch & European Patent Attorney, UPC Representative
De Vries & Metman
Wouter Mooij is Head of Chemistry & Life Sciences at De Vries & Metman. He oversees the prosecution of patent portfolios covering small molecule therapeutics, drawing on his background in medicinal chemistry and his extensive experience in patent litigation. His clients range from early‑stage spin‑outs to global pharmaceutical companies. Wouter brings a practical, strategic perspective to this panel on AI‑discovered therapeutics.
Bryan Goodman
Executive Director, AI
Ford
Bryan Goodman is the Executive Director of Artificial Intelligence in Ford’s data and analytics organization. He focuses on enabling the use of AI throughout Ford. This includes coordinating infrastructure, tools, and training, and developing advanced AI applications. He chairs Ford's AI technology and ethics council. He is an inventor on 13 US patents. Bryan received his PhD in physical chemistry and computational science and engineering from the University of Illinois.
Denise Keeler
Chief Growth Officer
OrangeTwist
Part I: Managing Career Progression, Establishing Influence and Leading Effective Teams in the Life Science Legal Sector
This quickfire presentation will examine how influence is built and exercised within life science legal functions, and how it shapes decision-making authority, career trajectory and team performance.
Part II: Building Strategic Influence as Women in Life Sciences Legal Leadership
This session will bring together senior in-house counsel and private practitioners for a candid discussion on career progression, leadership development and building influence within life science organisations. Participants will exchange practical perspectives on navigating leadership transitions, building internal visibility and positioning themselves for senior roles across the legal function. The session will be structured to encourage peer-to-peer discussion, allowing attendees to share experiences and practical strategies across IP, regulatory, competition and corporate legal disciplines.
Jamie Pearson
General Counsel & Chief Compliance Officer
Shionogi Europe
Fleur Herrenschmidt
Chief Legal Officer
Norgine
Laila Beynon
Director, Dispute Resolution
Regeneron
Laila Beynon is Director, Dispute Resolution at Regeneron, responsible for the strategic co-ordination of ex-US patent litigation. She has a PhD in Biochemistry/Molecular Biology, 10 years’ private practice experience in life sciences patent litigation at Herbert Smith Freehills LLP, and prior to her role at Regeneron headed up the Patent Litigation team at BAT.
Lena Moran-Adams
Group General Counsel
-
Veronika Hughes-Bednar
VP, Global Head of Legal Transactions
Astellas Pharma
This interactive discussion explores how knowing what evidence and arguments have already succeeded or failed in litigation/oppositions around the world provides a head start and advantage in preparing or defending cases at the EPO and courts.
Alex Eichner
Senior Director Legal & Regulatory Europe
IPD Analytics
Alexander Eichner is a Senior Director of European Legal & Regulatory Analysis at IPD Analytics. He observes, analyses, and predicts EPO oppositions and appeals, national court proceedings, and UPC hearings, and coordinates IPD’s coverage of these disputes across Europe and globally. He also analyses IP portfolios in the pharmaceutical, biotech, and medtech sectors and contributes to the development of new legal and insights products.
Before joining IPD Analytics in 2021, he spent seven years at top-tier Munich patent law firms specializing in biotechnology. He is a qualified European and German Patent Attorney and a registered UPC Representative. He holds a BSc and MSc in Biochemistry from the Technical University of Munich and a doctorate based on research conducted at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria.
Florian Brandt
Senior Director Legal & Regulatory Europe
IPD Analytics
Florian Brandt is a Senior Director on IPD Analytics' European Legal & Regulatory team. He is a qualified European and German Patent Attorney and a registered UPC Representative. At IPD, he works on legal analyses of key decisive patent validity and infringement litigation with the most significant potential market impact on small and large molecule pharmaceutical products across all major European venues. Florian is also involved in developing IPD’s tracking, analytics, and insights solutions.
Before joining IPD in 2018, Florian worked at a top-tier patent law firm in Germany in prosecution and litigation of life science patent portfolios covering both small and large molecule products (2010-2018). He holds science degrees in Biochemistry from the Technical University of Munich and a PhD for studies at the Max-Planck Institute of Biochemistry.
Joshua Bleet
Executive VP of International Legal & Regulatory Analysis
IPD Analytics
Joshua Bleet is the Executive Vice President of International Legal & Regulatory Analysis at IPD Analytics. Joshua joined IPD 17 years ago after working as a patent litigator and clerking for Judge Alvin A. Schall of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. He leads a team of attorneys who observe, analyze, and predict court and patent office proceedings in Europe (EPO, national courts, UPC), Japan, China, India, Canada, Australia, Korea, Brazil, Russia, Mexico, and Taiwan). He also leads teams dedicated to Global Litigation Tracking, Expert Witness Insights, Settlement Analytics, and Claim Construction Insights. Previously, Joshua led IPD’s development of the European Supplementary Protection Certificate Tracker. His favorite part of the job is solving problems thought to be unsolvable.
