WSGR logoWSGR logo
WSGR logo
  • Experience
  • People
  • Insights
  • About Us
  • Careers

  • Practice Areas
  • Industries

  • Corporate
  • Intellectual Property
  • Litigation
  • Patents and Innovations
  • Regulatory
  • Technology Transactions

  • Capital Markets
  • Corporate Governance
  • Corporate Life Sciences
  • Derivatives
  • Emerging Companies and Venture Capital
  • Employee Benefits and Compensation
  • Energy and Climate Solutions
  • Executive Advisory Program
  • Finance and Structured Finance
  • Fund Formation
  • Greater China
  • Mergers & Acquisitions
  • Private Equity
  • Public Company Representation
  • Real Estate
  • Restructuring
  • Shareholder Engagement and Activism
  • Tax
  • U.S. Expansion

  • Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs)

  • Environmental, Social, and Governance

  • AI and Data Center Infrastructure
  • Energy Regulation and Competition
  • Project Development and M&A
  • Project Finance and Tax Credit Transactions
  • Sustainability and Decarbonization
  • Transportation Electrification

  • U.S. Expansion Library and Resources

  • Post-Grant Review
  • Trademark and Advertising

  • Antitrust Litigation
  • Arbitration
  • Board and Internal Investigations
  • Class Action Litigation
  • Commercial Litigation
  • Consumer Litigation
  • Corporate Governance Litigation
  • Employment Litigation
  • Government Investigations
  • Internet Strategy and Litigation
  • Patent Litigation
  • Securities Litigation
  • State Attorneys General
  • Supreme Court and Appellate Practice
  • Trade Secret Litigation
  • Trademark and Copyright Litigation
  • Trial
  • White Collar Crime

  • Advertising, Promotions, and Marketing
  • Antitrust and Competition
  • Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. (CFIUS)
  • Communications
  • Data, Privacy, and Cybersecurity
  • Export Control and Sanctions
  • FCPA and Anti-Corruption
  • Federal Trade Commission
  • Fintech and Financial Services
  • Government Contracts
  • Healthcare and FDA Regulatory
  • National Security and Trade
  • Payments
  • State Attorneys General
  • Strategic Risk and Crisis Management
  • Tariffs, Customs, and Import Compliance

  • Antitrust and Intellectual Property
  • Antitrust Civil Enforcement
  • Antitrust Compliance and Business Strategy
  • Antitrust Criminal Enforcement
  • Antitrust Litigation
  • Antitrust Merger Clearance
  • European Competition Law
  • Third-Party Merger and Non-Merger Antitrust Representation

  • FDA Regulatory and Compliance

  • Anti-Money Laundering
  • Foreign Ownership, Control, or Influence (FOCI)
  • Team Telecom

  • AI in Healthcare
  • Animal Health
  • Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
  • Aviation
  • Biotech
  • Blockchain and Cryptocurrency
  • Clean Energy
  • Climate and Clean Technologies
  • Communications and Networking
  • Consumer Products and Services
  • Data Storage and Cloud
  • Defense Tech
  • Diagnostics, Life Science Tools, and Deep Tech
  • Digital Health
  • Digital Media and Entertainment
  • Electronic Gaming
  • Fintech and Financial Services
  • FoodTech and AgTech
  • Global Generics
  • Internet
  • Life Sciences
  • Medical Devices
  • Mobile Devices
  • Mobility
  • NewSpace
  • Quantum Computing
  • Semiconductors
  • Software

  • Offices
  • Country Desks
  • Events
  • Community
  • Our Diversity
  • Sustainability
  • Our Values
  • Board of Directors
  • Management Team

  • Austin
  • Boston
  • Boulder
  • Brussels
  • Century City
  • Hong Kong
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • New York
  • Palo Alto
  • Salt Lake City
  • San Diego
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Shanghai
  • Washington, D.C.
  • Wilmington, DE

  • Law Students
  • Judicial Clerks
  • Experienced Attorneys
  • Patent Agents
  • Business Professionals
  • Alternative Legal Careers
  • Contact Recruiting

Life Sciences Business Advisory Practice

Open PDF
  • Our BAP Team Applies Industry Operating Experience to Benefit Growing Life Sciences Companies

    Drawing from prior company-side leadership roles, Wilson Sonsini’s Business Advisory Practice team brings operator-level experience to help life sciences clients where it’s most needed: capital raises, corporate development and partnering strategy, deal comparables and valuations, and business strategy.

  • Acting as Embedded Team Members, Coordinating with Each Client’s Wilson Sonsini Team

    BAP’s professionals function as embedded stakeholders in a company, working in close collaboration with each client’s Wilson Sonsini legal team, when applicable. That seamless coordination means life sciences clients benefit from valuable industry and legal experience.  BAP provides extended investor and commercial networks, and broader market reach—that’s the Wilson Sonsini advantage.

  • A Business Advisory Practice Success Story: Foresight Diagnostics Case Study

    Wilson Sonsini's Business Advisory Practice advised Foresight Diagnostics from its Stanford spinout beginnings through Series A and B financings, critical strategic patent considerations, a strategic partnership with Allogene Therapeutics, and ultimately its acquisition by Natera. See our Foresight case study to read about this success story.

What Makes Our Business Advisory Practice Different?

Operator Credibility

We’ve sat in your seat. Wilson Sonsini’s BAP professionals have held leadership and/or operating roles inside life sciences companies, not just advised them. When they advise a founder or CEO on fundraising or a business development leader on partnerships, the advice comes from former insiders who have made those decisions before.

Integrated, End-to-End Advisory

Wilson Sonsini’s BAP team brings together strategy, deal comparables, investor connections, and ongoing support into one cohesive engagement. The team takes on project-based or sustained engagements, depending on each client’s needs.

Sector Knowledge

Our BAP team has industry insider experience based on their prior roles at life sciences companies in key sectors, including the therapeutics, diagnostics, digital health, and medtech industries.

The Wilson Sonsini Advantage

 Our foundation is the team's own operating experience and track record. Wilson Sonsini builds on that—adding network, reach, and seamless coordination with the firm's legal practice whenever clients need both.

Stage-Appropriate Experience

We calibrate to the realities of each stage of your business. Same operating judgment, applied to the distinct challenges of where your company is at any given moment.

Business Development Depth

Strategy before execution. Our BD strategy is built collaboratively, so our introductions are purposeful and well-targeted to your specific needs.

Want to Learn More? Contact Us.

To find out more about Wilson Sonsini’s Business Advisory Practice, please contact our BAP practice team leader, Matthew Meyer.

Overview

What Makes Our Business Advisory Practice Different?

Operator Credibility

We’ve sat in your seat. Wilson Sonsini’s BAP professionals have held leadership and/or operating roles inside life sciences companies, not just advised them. When they advise a founder or CEO on fundraising or a business development leader on partnerships, the advice comes from former insiders who have made those decisions before.

Integrated, End-to-End Advisory

Wilson Sonsini’s BAP team brings together strategy, deal comparables, investor connections, and ongoing support into one cohesive engagement. The team takes on project-based or sustained engagements, depending on each client’s needs.

Sector Knowledge

Our BAP team has industry insider experience based on their prior roles at life sciences companies in key sectors, including the therapeutics, diagnostics, digital health, and medtech industries.

The Wilson Sonsini Advantage

 Our foundation is the team's own operating experience and track record. Wilson Sonsini builds on that—adding network, reach, and seamless coordination with the firm's legal practice whenever clients need both.

Stage-Appropriate Experience

We calibrate to the realities of each stage of your business. Same operating judgment, applied to the distinct challenges of where your company is at any given moment.

Business Development Depth

Strategy before execution. Our BD strategy is built collaboratively, so our introductions are purposeful and well-targeted to your specific needs.

Want to Learn More? Contact Us.

To find out more about Wilson Sonsini’s Business Advisory Practice, please contact our BAP practice team leader, Matthew Meyer.

Case Studies
How Wilson Sonsini Helped Foresight Diagnostics with Its Growth, Scale-Up, and Acquisition
Foresight Diagnostics is a leading cancer diagnostics company founded in 2020 and spun out of Stanford University. Foresight has developed a novel liquid biopsy testing platform for the measurement of minimal residual disease that is significantly more sensitive than existing tests. Its technology, called PhasED-SeqTM, is based on a simple blood draw and next-generation sequencing. It is broadly applicable to a variety of cancers, and its ability to detect circulating tumor DNA at levels of 0.0001 percent (or one part-per-million) has the potential to provide actionable information to physicians and biopharmaceutical companies, thus enabling the development of a more proactive and personalized treatment approach.
Newsletters
The Life Sciences Report – January 2026
This latest edition features articles on reasons for optimism around 2026 life sciences fundraising, key IP priorities for biotech and biopharma following Series B financing, the default rules of joint patent rights worldwide, the evolving role of innovation theories of harm in the antitrust analysis of life science mergers, life sciences venture financings for firm clients across 2H2024 and 1H2025, and how Wilson Sonsini helped ensure Light Horse Therapeutics’ impressive debut. The report also includes details on the most recent Biotech Summit and Phoenix Conference, the LaunchBio East Coast NextGen VC Forum, the latest episodes of the NextGen VC Podcast focused on life sciences investing, and the Patents and Innovations Library for in-house IP counsel, as well as select life sciences client highlights and upcoming events.
Newsletters
The Life Sciences Report – June 2025
This latest edition features articles on succeeding in the current life sciences funding market, strategic and legal considerations in digital health combinations, the corporate practice of medicine and guidance for healthcare companies and investors, the FDA’s plan to phase out animal testing, and life sciences venture financings for clients in 2024. The newsletter also includes details on the firm’s additions of leading digital health attorney and former HHS policymaker Jodi Daniel and USPTO veteran Jean Witz, the recent LaunchBio West Coast NextGen VC Forum and Life Sciences Investment Forum, Wilson Sonsini’s LSPN “Life Sciences IP Firm of the Year” award and sponsorship of the National Inventors Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, the latest episodes of the NextGen VC Podcast focused on life sciences investing, and the Patents and Innovations Learning Library for in-house IP counsel, as well as select life sciences client highlights, recent webinars, and upcoming events.
Alerts
FDA’s LDT Final Rule Rejected by Federal District Court in Texas
As Wilson Sonsini previously reported,1 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had been preparing the industry to comply with the 2024 LDT Final Rule, which phases out the FDA’s enforcement discretion policy for laboratory developed tests (LDTs) and phases in device requirements starting in May 2025. But legal challenges against the LDT Final Rule have prevailed. On March 31, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas vacated the LDT Final Rule, declaring that LDTs are not devices regulated by the FDA under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act). Rather, the court determined that LDTs are professional services regulated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988 (CLIA).
Newsletters
The Life Sciences Report – January 2025
This latest edition features an interview with retiring longtime Wilson Sonsini IP partner Vern Norviel and articles on MedTech and pharma trends for 2025, the eligibility of life sciences companies for qualified small business stock, what life sciences companies need to know about brands, double-patenting jeopardy, and life sciences venture financings for clients across 2H 2023 and 1H 2024. The newsletter also includes details on the firm’s inaugural Biotech Summit and 29th Annual Phoenix Conference, technical writing and IPO documentation offerings for life sciences clients, 2024 LaunchBio NextGen VC Forums, the Patents and Innovations Learning Library for in-house IP counsel, the latest episodes of the NextGen VC Podcast focused on life sciences investing, and a call for applications from MedTech Innovator and BioTools Innovator, as well as select life sciences client highlights.
Newsletters
The Life Sciences Report – June 2024
This latest edition features articles on biotech client Siolta Therapeutics, the use of safety and efficacy findings to extend drug exclusivity periods, life sciences venture financings for clients in 2023, and updated USPTO guidance for determining non-obviousness. The newsletter also includes details on the recent LaunchBio NextGen VC Forum in San Francisco, the firm’s Patents and Innovations Learning Library for in-house IP counsel, the latest episodes of the LaunchBio/Wilson Sonsini NextGen VC Podcast focused on life sciences investing, and the firm’s sponsorship of the National Inventors Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, as well as select life sciences client highlights.
View All
Insights
Case Studies
How Wilson Sonsini Helped Foresight Diagnostics with Its Growth, Scale-Up, and Acquisition
Foresight Diagnostics is a leading cancer diagnostics company founded in 2020 and spun out of Stanford University. Foresight has developed a novel liquid biopsy testing platform for the measurement of minimal residual disease that is significantly more sensitive than existing tests. Its technology, called PhasED-SeqTM, is based on a simple blood draw and next-generation sequencing. It is broadly applicable to a variety of cancers, and its ability to detect circulating tumor DNA at levels of 0.0001 percent (or one part-per-million) has the potential to provide actionable information to physicians and biopharmaceutical companies, thus enabling the development of a more proactive and personalized treatment approach.
Newsletters
The Life Sciences Report – January 2026
This latest edition features articles on reasons for optimism around 2026 life sciences fundraising, key IP priorities for biotech and biopharma following Series B financing, the default rules of joint patent rights worldwide, the evolving role of innovation theories of harm in the antitrust analysis of life science mergers, life sciences venture financings for firm clients across 2H2024 and 1H2025, and how Wilson Sonsini helped ensure Light Horse Therapeutics’ impressive debut. The report also includes details on the most recent Biotech Summit and Phoenix Conference, the LaunchBio East Coast NextGen VC Forum, the latest episodes of the NextGen VC Podcast focused on life sciences investing, and the Patents and Innovations Library for in-house IP counsel, as well as select life sciences client highlights and upcoming events.
Newsletters
The Life Sciences Report – June 2025
This latest edition features articles on succeeding in the current life sciences funding market, strategic and legal considerations in digital health combinations, the corporate practice of medicine and guidance for healthcare companies and investors, the FDA’s plan to phase out animal testing, and life sciences venture financings for clients in 2024. The newsletter also includes details on the firm’s additions of leading digital health attorney and former HHS policymaker Jodi Daniel and USPTO veteran Jean Witz, the recent LaunchBio West Coast NextGen VC Forum and Life Sciences Investment Forum, Wilson Sonsini’s LSPN “Life Sciences IP Firm of the Year” award and sponsorship of the National Inventors Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, the latest episodes of the NextGen VC Podcast focused on life sciences investing, and the Patents and Innovations Learning Library for in-house IP counsel, as well as select life sciences client highlights, recent webinars, and upcoming events.
Alerts
FDA’s LDT Final Rule Rejected by Federal District Court in Texas
As Wilson Sonsini previously reported,1 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had been preparing the industry to comply with the 2024 LDT Final Rule, which phases out the FDA’s enforcement discretion policy for laboratory developed tests (LDTs) and phases in device requirements starting in May 2025. But legal challenges against the LDT Final Rule have prevailed. On March 31, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas vacated the LDT Final Rule, declaring that LDTs are not devices regulated by the FDA under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act). Rather, the court determined that LDTs are professional services regulated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988 (CLIA).
Newsletters
The Life Sciences Report – January 2025
This latest edition features an interview with retiring longtime Wilson Sonsini IP partner Vern Norviel and articles on MedTech and pharma trends for 2025, the eligibility of life sciences companies for qualified small business stock, what life sciences companies need to know about brands, double-patenting jeopardy, and life sciences venture financings for clients across 2H 2023 and 1H 2024. The newsletter also includes details on the firm’s inaugural Biotech Summit and 29th Annual Phoenix Conference, technical writing and IPO documentation offerings for life sciences clients, 2024 LaunchBio NextGen VC Forums, the Patents and Innovations Learning Library for in-house IP counsel, the latest episodes of the NextGen VC Podcast focused on life sciences investing, and a call for applications from MedTech Innovator and BioTools Innovator, as well as select life sciences client highlights.
Newsletters
The Life Sciences Report – June 2024
This latest edition features articles on biotech client Siolta Therapeutics, the use of safety and efficacy findings to extend drug exclusivity periods, life sciences venture financings for clients in 2023, and updated USPTO guidance for determining non-obviousness. The newsletter also includes details on the recent LaunchBio NextGen VC Forum in San Francisco, the firm’s Patents and Innovations Learning Library for in-house IP counsel, the latest episodes of the LaunchBio/Wilson Sonsini NextGen VC Podcast focused on life sciences investing, and the firm’s sponsorship of the National Inventors Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, as well as select life sciences client highlights.
View All
Affiliated Programs
Innosphere & Wilson Sonsini Lunch and Learn: Best Practices When Pitching to Life Science Investors and Industry Partners
Join us this week with Innosphere for a focused discussion on Best Practices When Pitching to Life Science Investors and Industry Partners. Whether you are an emerging biopharma company or have a breakthrough idea for a digital health app, understanding the nuances of the life science venture capital environment is critical in setting your company up for success. Through this session, you will learn about the different types of life science investors, how to prepare for an outreach, how to develop a “killer” pitch deck, and gain insights on the partnering process. Learn more about the lunch & learn, featuring firm partner Brent Fassett and chief business advisor Matthew Meyer here.
Affiliated Programs
Wilson Sonsini x GHWN - FDA and Business Considerations for Life Sciences and Healthcare Startups
In partnership with Columbia Alumni Association’s Global Health and Wellness Network (GHWN), please join Wilson Sonsini partner Eva Yin for an FDA primer on how medical devices, diagnostics, and pharmaceuticals are regulated, as well as a discussion on general healthcare regulatory considerations and go-to-market strategies for start-ups. The webinar will also feature Chief Business Advisor Matthew Meyer, who will discuss partnering and fundraising best practices for life sciences start-ups.
Speaking Engagements
Swissnex Session: Successfully Expanding into the U.S. Life Science Market
Matthew Meyer will lead the session: "Successfully Expanding into the U.S. Life Science Market."
Affiliated Programs
North Carolina Biotech Center – Wilson Sonsini Life Science Bootcamp
Wilson Sonsini is pleased to partner with the North Carolina Biotechnology Center to host a Life Science Bootcamp. Join us on October 27 for an event that will highlight practical insights into crucial legal and business matters for life science entrepreneurs. Attendees will gain expertise in key areas such as IP and licensing strategy, market-oriented patent and trade secret approaches, competitor analysis, in-licensing of enabling technologies, and collaborative IP structures.
Speaking Engagements
Biocom Global Life Science Partnering & Investor Conference
Vern Norviel provides opening remarks and introduces the panel “Feeding the Pipeline: Sources of Innovation from Leading Non-Profit Research Institutes."
WSGR Events
Insights on Succeeding in the Life Science Sectors in the USA and Switzerland
Please join Wilson Sonsini and Niederer Kraft Frey for a panel featuring Swiss and American venture capitalists and executives who will discuss the differences between investment considerations and VC expectations around scaling and development timelines, as well as how to best navigate them.
View All
Events
Affiliated Programs
Innosphere & Wilson Sonsini Lunch and Learn: Best Practices When Pitching to Life Science Investors and Industry Partners
Join us this week with Innosphere for a focused discussion on Best Practices When Pitching to Life Science Investors and Industry Partners. Whether you are an emerging biopharma company or have a breakthrough idea for a digital health app, understanding the nuances of the life science venture capital environment is critical in setting your company up for success. Through this session, you will learn about the different types of life science investors, how to prepare for an outreach, how to develop a “killer” pitch deck, and gain insights on the partnering process. Learn more about the lunch & learn, featuring firm partner Brent Fassett and chief business advisor Matthew Meyer here.
Affiliated Programs
Wilson Sonsini x GHWN - FDA and Business Considerations for Life Sciences and Healthcare Startups
In partnership with Columbia Alumni Association’s Global Health and Wellness Network (GHWN), please join Wilson Sonsini partner Eva Yin for an FDA primer on how medical devices, diagnostics, and pharmaceuticals are regulated, as well as a discussion on general healthcare regulatory considerations and go-to-market strategies for start-ups. The webinar will also feature Chief Business Advisor Matthew Meyer, who will discuss partnering and fundraising best practices for life sciences start-ups.
Speaking Engagements
Swissnex Session: Successfully Expanding into the U.S. Life Science Market
Matthew Meyer will lead the session: "Successfully Expanding into the U.S. Life Science Market."
Affiliated Programs
North Carolina Biotech Center – Wilson Sonsini Life Science Bootcamp
Wilson Sonsini is pleased to partner with the North Carolina Biotechnology Center to host a Life Science Bootcamp. Join us on October 27 for an event that will highlight practical insights into crucial legal and business matters for life science entrepreneurs. Attendees will gain expertise in key areas such as IP and licensing strategy, market-oriented patent and trade secret approaches, competitor analysis, in-licensing of enabling technologies, and collaborative IP structures.
Speaking Engagements
Biocom Global Life Science Partnering & Investor Conference
Vern Norviel provides opening remarks and introduces the panel “Feeding the Pipeline: Sources of Innovation from Leading Non-Profit Research Institutes."
WSGR Events
Insights on Succeeding in the Life Science Sectors in the USA and Switzerland
Please join Wilson Sonsini and Niederer Kraft Frey for a panel featuring Swiss and American venture capitalists and executives who will discuss the differences between investment considerations and VC expectations around scaling and development timelines, as well as how to best navigate them.
View All
Matthew J. Meyer
Chief Business Advisor, Life Sciences Business Advisory
San Francisco
Matthew J. Meyer is chief business advisor for life sciences at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. Based in San Francisco, Matthew leads the firm's life science business advisory practice—a newly formed, innovative resource aimed at providing start-up and emerging life sciences companies with business insights, capabilities, and strategies to help them thrive and address some of their most challenging issues.
  • Corporate
View Profile
Katharine Ku
Chief Licensing Advisor
Palo Alto
Katharine (Kathy) Ku is the chief licensing advisor in the Palo Alto office of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. She is also a member of the technology transactions and the patents and innovations practice groups.
  • Technology Transactions
View Profile
Jonathan Soderstrom
Chief Licensing Advisor
New York
Dr. Jonathan Soderstrom is a chief licensing advisor in the New York office of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. He is also a member of the technology transactions and the patents and innovations practice groups. Jon has spent over 40 years managing the commercialization of intellectual property created at major public and private research institutions.

Under Jon’s leadership for 25-plus years, Yale Ventures (formerly known as Yale’s Office of Cooperative Research) helped form over 75 new ventures including Achillion Pharmaceuticals, Arvinas, NextCure, Biohaven Pharmaceuticals, and Inozyme Pharma, which have collectively raised over $1 billion in professional venture capital.
  • Life Sciences Business Advisory Practice
View Profile
Matthew G. Brown
Senior Director, Life Sciences Business Advisory
San Diego
Matthew G. Brown has spent nearly 20 years inside life sciences companies, leading business development, licensing, and corporate development at Becton, Dickinson and Company, Exagen, Monod Bio, and EMD Millipore. He has originated and closed in-licenses, out-licenses, strategic collaborations, OEM supply agreements, and acquisitions.
  • Corporate
View Profile
Samuel Edland
Senior Manager, Business Advisory
Boston
Sam Edland is a senior manager in the life sciences business advisory practice at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. Based in Boston, his practice focuses on advising early-stage life sciences companies on transactional initiatives with valuations, business insights, capabilities, and strategies to help them thrive and address some of their most challenging issues.
  • Life Sciences Business Advisory Practice
View Profile
People
Matthew J. Meyer
Chief Business Advisor, Life Sciences Business Advisory
San Francisco
Matthew J. Meyer is chief business advisor for life sciences at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. Based in San Francisco, Matthew leads the firm's life science business advisory practice—a newly formed, innovative resource aimed at providing start-up and emerging life sciences companies with business insights, capabilities, and strategies to help them thrive and address some of their most challenging issues.
  • Corporate
View Profile
Katharine Ku
Chief Licensing Advisor
Palo Alto
Katharine (Kathy) Ku is the chief licensing advisor in the Palo Alto office of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. She is also a member of the technology transactions and the patents and innovations practice groups.
  • Technology Transactions
View Profile
Jonathan Soderstrom
Chief Licensing Advisor
New York
Dr. Jonathan Soderstrom is a chief licensing advisor in the New York office of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. He is also a member of the technology transactions and the patents and innovations practice groups. Jon has spent over 40 years managing the commercialization of intellectual property created at major public and private research institutions.

Under Jon’s leadership for 25-plus years, Yale Ventures (formerly known as Yale’s Office of Cooperative Research) helped form over 75 new ventures including Achillion Pharmaceuticals, Arvinas, NextCure, Biohaven Pharmaceuticals, and Inozyme Pharma, which have collectively raised over $1 billion in professional venture capital.
  • Life Sciences Business Advisory Practice
View Profile
Matthew G. Brown
Senior Director, Life Sciences Business Advisory
San Diego
Matthew G. Brown has spent nearly 20 years inside life sciences companies, leading business development, licensing, and corporate development at Becton, Dickinson and Company, Exagen, Monod Bio, and EMD Millipore. He has originated and closed in-licenses, out-licenses, strategic collaborations, OEM supply agreements, and acquisitions.
  • Corporate
View Profile
Samuel Edland
Senior Manager, Business Advisory
Boston
Sam Edland is a senior manager in the life sciences business advisory practice at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. Based in Boston, his practice focuses on advising early-stage life sciences companies on transactional initiatives with valuations, business insights, capabilities, and strategies to help them thrive and address some of their most challenging issues.
  • Life Sciences Business Advisory Practice
View Profile
Related Practices
  • Corporate Life Sciences
  • Healthcare and FDA Regulatory
  • Patents and Innovations
  • Technology Transactions
Related Industries
  • Biotech
  • Diagnostics, Life Science Tools, and Deep Tech
  • Digital Health
  • Life Sciences
  • Medical Devices
Recent Insights
Case Studies
How Wilson Sonsini Helped Foresight Diagnostics with Its Growth, Scale-Up, and Acquisition
Foresight Diagnostics is a leading cancer diagnostics company founded in 2020 and spun out of Stanford University. Foresight has developed a novel liquid biopsy testing platform for the measurement of minimal residual disease that is significantly more sensitive than existing tests. Its technology, called PhasED-SeqTM, is based on a simple blood draw and next-generation sequencing. It is broadly applicable to a variety of cancers, and its ability to detect circulating tumor DNA at levels of 0.0001 percent (or one part-per-million) has the potential to provide actionable information to physicians and biopharmaceutical companies, thus enabling the development of a more proactive and personalized treatment approach.
Learn More
Newsletters
The Life Sciences Report – January 2026
This latest edition features articles on reasons for optimism around 2026 life sciences fundraising, key IP priorities for biotech and biopharma following Series B financing, the default rules of joint patent rights worldwide, the evolving role of innovation theories of harm in the antitrust analysis of life science mergers, life sciences venture financings for firm clients across 2H2024 and 1H2025, and how Wilson Sonsini helped ensure Light Horse Therapeutics’ impressive debut. The report also includes details on the most recent Biotech Summit and Phoenix Conference, the LaunchBio East Coast NextGen VC Forum, the latest episodes of the NextGen VC Podcast focused on life sciences investing, and the Patents and Innovations Library for in-house IP counsel, as well as select life sciences client highlights and upcoming events.
Learn More
View All
Recent Events
Affiliated Programs
Innosphere & Wilson Sonsini Lunch and Learn: Best Practices When Pitching to Life Science Investors and Industry Partners
Join us this week with Innosphere for a focused discussion on Best Practices When Pitching to Life Science Investors and Industry Partners. Whether you are an emerging biopharma company or have a breakthrough idea for a digital health app, understanding the nuances of the life science venture capital environment is critical in setting your company up for success. Through this session, you will learn about the different types of life science investors, how to prepare for an outreach, how to develop a “killer” pitch deck, and gain insights on the partnering process. Learn more about the lunch & learn, featuring firm partner Brent Fassett and chief business advisor Matthew Meyer here.
Learn More
Affiliated Programs
Wilson Sonsini x GHWN - FDA and Business Considerations for Life Sciences and Healthcare Startups
In partnership with Columbia Alumni Association’s Global Health and Wellness Network (GHWN), please join Wilson Sonsini partner Eva Yin for an FDA primer on how medical devices, diagnostics, and pharmaceuticals are regulated, as well as a discussion on general healthcare regulatory considerations and go-to-market strategies for start-ups. The webinar will also feature Chief Business Advisor Matthew Meyer, who will discuss partnering and fundraising best practices for life sciences start-ups.
Learn More
View All
Key Contacts
Matthew J. Meyer
Chief Business Advisor, Life Sciences Business Advisory
San Francisco
Matthew J. Meyer is chief business advisor for life sciences at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. Based in San Francisco, Matthew leads the firm's life science business advisory practice—a newly formed, innovative resource aimed at providing start-up and emerging life sciences companies with business insights, capabilities, and strategies to help them thrive and address some of their most challenging issues.
  • Corporate
View Profile
Katharine Ku
Chief Licensing Advisor
Palo Alto
Katharine (Kathy) Ku is the chief licensing advisor in the Palo Alto office of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. She is also a member of the technology transactions and the patents and innovations practice groups.
  • Technology Transactions
View Profile
  • people
  • insights
  • about us
  • careers
  • Binder
  • Alumni
  • Mailing List Signup
  • Client FTP Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Accessibility
WSGR logo
Twitter
LinkedIn
Facebook
Instagram
Youtube
Copyright © 2026 Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. All Rights Reserved.