Briana M. Erickson, Ph.D., is a technical specialist at Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP in the Firm’s Boston office. Her practice focuses on intellectual property law in the biotechnology, chemistry, pharmaceuticals, molecular biology, and oncology fields.

Dr. Erickson assists clients with patent prosecution, freedom to operate, and intellectual property due diligence in the biotechnology area. Her experience includes the strategic development, protection, and management of patent portfolios for pharmaceutical clients ranging from Big Pharma to start-ups.

Her notable experience includes:

• Preparing and prosecuting U.S. and foreign patent applications in the fields of biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, and oncology.
• Conducting freedom to operate and invalidity analyses and preparing related opinions.
• Developing a patent portfolio directed to nutraceutical products isolated from fruit seeds that have beneficial effects when administered to subjects, including treating and reducing the occurrence of breast cancer.
• Performed doctoral dissertation research investigating the expression and function of the Ig- like cell adhesion molecule Necl-5 during hepatic injury and hepatocellular carcinoma.
• Recipient of a Pre-doctoral Training Fellowship from the National Institutes of Health. 

Dr. Erickson is registered to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. She is also a member of the American Intellectual Property Law Association and the Women’s Bar Association. Dr. Erickson was the recipient of “Best Legal Brief” in the first year legal practice skills program at Suffolk University Law School.

Dr. Erickson’s work has been published in the journal Hepatolog, and she has presented at several scientific conferences.

In 2006, Dr. Erickson earned her Ph.D.  from Brown University in Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry. She earned her Bachelor of Science, cum laude, in Biology from Boston College in 2000.  She is currently attending Suffolk University Law School with an expected graduation date of 2012.