Ana María Frieri
(Of-Counsel)
Interview
1.AMF you were one of the founding partners of OlarteMoure. How does it feel to return to the firm after ten years?
It is absolutely gratifying to see how the firm has grown exponentially while preserving the core values which prompted us to create the firm originally. Today OlarteMoure is a sizable and well-rounded firm which offers services in every aspect of IP rights, yet maintains a close and personal focus and understands our clients business in depth. It is even more satisfying to see that our efforts to make it our business to promote awareness of the role of IP on innovation and development has borne fruit. Today OM is filing a significant number of locally generated patents. We are serving many local universities from our office in Medellin, Barranquilla Bucaramanga, and now in Tokyo! I remember when ten years ago Carlos (Olarte) and I first started giving lectures on patents in universities and the topic was quite exotic. Now we have quite knowledgeable and sophisticated audiences and a considerable portion of locally generated patents filings. That is truly amazing and I am excited to contribute to this continued capacity building.
2. 2. You have been in the Life Science business for the past two decades. What do you like best about your practice and how have intellectual property matters changed in the past decade?
I have always been passionate about science, excited and intrigued by the perspectives it offers, and convinced that IP plays a critical role in promoting its advancement. The possibility to work at the interaction of all these disciplines is exciting. As the complexities of technology advances it presents possibilities and presents regulatory and legal challenges. In my university thesis I analyzed the vanguard topic of “patents over human genes”: and the controversy has still to be resolved, but now there are lab created self-replicating organisms! The proper handling of legal and intellectual property matters entails the understanding of scientific issues which are intriguing and awe inspiring.
3. You’ve also recently worked as legal director for the local PhRMA association AFIDRO. How did this opportunity enrich your professional and personal experience?
Working in AFIDRO gave me a better understanding of the most relevant issues affecting the pharmaceutical industry today not only in Colombia but in the region: from compliance to the much debated regulation on biosimilars, and how these issues impact the pharmaceutical business.
4. You joined OlarteMoure on December 1st, 2016 as Of Counsel and a member of the Executive Committee. What are your expectations?
I hope to contribute to the firm as it continues to grow and evolve while preserving the special and personalized treatment of people: workers and clients alike. I very much look forward to the pleasure of learning and working with the OlarteMoure team.