Our People

With international experience in industrial development, involvement in high-technology start-up management, an MBA, and expertise delivering efficient and effective services, Rand will lead VanTek in meeting and exceeding client expectations.

Innovators need to be able to focus their energy and funding on their creative work, and depend on timely, consistent, affordable, and value-added advice on entrepreneurial strategy, public and private fundraising, and the essentials of business administration. Associate patent firms world-wide looking for client IP protection in Canada need to know that their instructions will be followed to the letter, in short order or exactly when requested, and at a reasonable cost. Those seeking advice for their Canadian or international portfolios need to know they are receiving the very best advice from the most experienced practitioners.

Whether what is needed is a timely and accurate filing in Canada, a full understanding of the costs and timelines for intellectual property protection in Canada and worldwide, or expertise on new business formation–from corporate structure to accounting–Rand will provide exactly what is needed. Yesterday.

When not trying to revolutionize industries, Rand is content to paddle among the oldest watercraft known, the kayak, and to the kinds of remote places only kayaks can go. He currently serves as President of the Sea Kayak Association of British Columbia. He is also a Passive House builder and building technology innovator, the founder of the Pacific Instutite for Ecological Economics, an activist for governmental accountability, and the father of two inspiring young men.

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Alaka’s practice focuses on chemical, pharmaceutical and biotechnology patent prosecution. In particular, Alaka has significant experience in preparing and prosecuting patent applications worldwide in the areas of solvent chemistry, organic chemistry, biochemistry, molecular biology, microbiology, bioinformatics, and immunology, including conditions relating to cancer, diabetes, neurodegeneration, infectious diseases, and technologies relating to solvent chemistry, stem cell biology, gene therapy, genomics and proteomics, RNA interference, antisense, protein therapeutics, antibodies, vaccines, small molecule therapeutics, and carbohydrate chemistry.

Alaka provides strategic patent counselling and worldwide patent portfolio management on behalf of a wide range of academic and corporate clients, including companies, universities and research institutions in the biotechnology, biomedical, pharmaceutical, agriculture, forestry and mining sectors.

Alaka is also experienced in due diligence analyses, and assessing and providing patentability, infringement, validity, and freedom-to-operate opinions.

Alaka’s research experience, both in academia and industry, in top research laboratories, together with a thorough understanding of patent rights, enables her to communicate and connect with scientists and researchers at a fundamental level and translate complex scientific concepts into patent applications.

Alaka is a registered patent agent and has a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Tufts University, Boston, Massachusetts. Alaka’s doctoral work focused on the regulation of DNA replication. Her post-doctoral studies focused on cell cycle regulation at a Boston-area biotechnology company, and on insulin signalling at the Joslin Diabetes Center, Harvard Medical School, and at Tufts University.

Alaka also has a law degree from Suffolk University Law School in Boston, and provides legal consultancy services to VanTek IP LLP through her law corporation.

Prior to founding what for its first five years was known as Vanguard IP LLP, Alaka practiced at intellectual property law firms in Vancouver (Canada) and in Boston (USA) for over 15 years.or over 15 years.

RANKINGS & RECOGNITIONS

Recommended by Intellectual Asset Management (IAM) Patent 1000, 2015 edition, for Patent Prosecution

Recognized by the 2014 Lexology Client Choice Awards as the exclusive winner for British Columbia, patents: http://www.clientchoice.com/alaka-chatterjee

Recognized as a life science star, intellectual property, by LMG Life Sciences in 2014 and 2015:

AFFILIATIONS

Intellectual Property Institute of Canada (IPIC)

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