SiliconBeat

Affymetrix, the Santa Clara maker of products used in genetic analysis, said in a filing Tuesday that its head lawyer, General Counsel Barbara Caulfied (pictured), will be leaving the company to join the law firm of Dewey & LeBoef. What the filing did not reveal was that she will become co-chair of the firm’s intellectual property litigation group and is taking three other Affymetrix lawyers with her.  Ouch.

Joining Caulfied at the law firm will be the company’s Chief Advocacy Counsel Michael Malecek, Associate General Counsel Peter Root and Assistant General Counsel Stephen Holmes. According to a press release issued by the law firm hiring them:

“Over the past five years at Affymetrix, the team successfully represented the company in several patent infringement cases (as both the patentee and the accused infringer), winning jury verdicts and motions for summary judgment in the company’s favor in the United States District Courts in Delaware, California, and New York. The team also successfully litigated commercial and licensing issues for the company in international (ICC) and US (AAA) arbitrations and supervised European counsel representing the company in UK and German courts,” read the release announcing her hiring at Dewey & LeBouef. “During this five year period, Affymetrix successfully reinvigorated its licensing program generating over $200 million in licensing revenue and defended against all attempts to force the company to take a license to third parties’ intellectual property.”

“Maintaining a strong patent position is critical to our business,” said Affymetrix in the portion of its most recent 10-K filing listing business risks. Just this past January Affymetrix collected a non-recurring $90 million intellectual property payment.

Caulfield served as a District Judge for the Northern District of California from 1991 until 1994 after trying a career representing companies such as Microsoft, Hoffman-La Roche, Eaton and Mobil Oil while in private practice since 1972. She will remain as secretary to the board of directors at Affymetrix.