Mintz Adds Patent Litigator Melinda Roberts in NYC
Roberts, formerly a partner at Venable, joins Mintz's Intellectual Property Practice in New York to handle life sciences patent disputes.
Updated on Nov. 6, 2026 in Biotech
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Mintz has welcomed Melinda Roberts as a member of its Intellectual Property Practice in New York. Roberts joins from Venable, where she was a partner in the Intellectual Property Litigation group.
Why it matters
The hire adds a litigator focused on pharmaceutical and biotechnology patent disputes to a firm building its life sciences patent litigation team. For New York clients in the sector, it expands local access to experienced counsel for high-stakes patent matters.
Roberts has handled patent disputes involving biologics, small molecules, and other life sciences technologies, and has litigated matters in federal court and before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. Her Hatch-Waxman litigation and post-grant proceedings experience covers the core patent tools used in drug and biologic disputes.
The players
Melinda Roberts
A patent litigator who represents pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, formerly a partner in Venable's Intellectual Property Litigation group and a former neuroscience researcher at Yale University School of Medicine.
Mintz
A law firm with more than 600 attorneys across eight offices, including its New York office where Roberts is based.
The details
Roberts represents pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies and patent owners, and before her legal career she conducted neuroscience research at Yale University School of Medicine. She earned her JD from the University of Wisconsin Law School and holds a bachelor's degree in chemistry from Yale University.
Timeline
November 6, 2026: Announcement of Roberts joining Mintz published.
Market Landscape
Patent disputes over drugs and biologics remain a central battleground in pharmaceutical competition, particularly under the Hatch-Waxman framework for generic entry. Law firms are competing to build deeper life sciences patent teams to serve this demand.
For companies developing drugs and biologics in New York, the hire gives them access to a litigator experienced in Hatch-Waxman and post-grant proceedings. Patent outcomes in these cases can determine when lower-cost generics or biosimilars reach patients.
The takeaway
Patent litigation is a key factor in when generic and biosimilar drugs reach the market, so expertise in these disputes shapes both company strategy and patient access to medicines.
Further reading
For more on the research and industry behind these disputes, see Biotech coverage.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Globallegalchronicle.
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