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Terri Shieh-Newton, PhD

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[email protected]

+1.415.432.6084

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With over 25 years of experience, Terri plays a strategic role for her clients as she guides their patent strategy, portfolio management, and investments. Trained as an immunologist at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, where she earned a PhD in cellular and molecular medicine, she works with companies of all sizes in a wide range of life sciences, including artificial intelligence in life sciences and synthetic biology industries. She also has conducted hundreds of IP due diligence for companies and investors at all stages of investment. Terri is known for her creative, business-savvy solutions and strategic thinking.

Terri has significant experience in a wide range of life sciences, synthetic biology, and clean technology industries that allows her to provide creative solutions and render pragmatic business advice to her clients. Her practice focuses on global patent strategy, creation of valuable IP portfolios, preparation and prosecution of patent applications, comprehensive portfolio management, freedom-to-operate analysis, opinion work, inter partes review (IPR) and other post-grant proceedings, and complex landscape searches and white space analysis.

Terri leads and conducts due diligences for both private and public companies and investors. She has been the primary IP counsel on many deals on behalf of investment bankers and underwriters for IPOs and other capital market offerings totaling more than $2 billion. Terri has also worked on company-side reverse mergers, public offerings, and mergers and acquisitions. She has also worked with private equity firms, hedge funds, and venture capitalists on due diligence assessment for investments and landscape analysis for formation of new funds and companies.

In addition, Terri’s practice includes assessing freedom-to-operate positions and rendering patentability and invalidity opinions. She has extensive experience in evaluating patent landscapes to advise clients seeking to enter competitive markets, as well as advising clients on third-party challenges and risk mitigation strategies. She has worked on biotechnology patent litigations, oppositions, and inter partes reviews.

Terri has worked on a wide variety of technical areas including antibodies, biologics and biosimilars, immuno-oncology (including chimeric T-antigen receptors and engineered immune cells), immunotherapy, cell therapy, gene editing (e.g., CRISPR technology), stem cells, regenerative medicine, gene therapy, synthetic biology, microbiomes, enzymes, protein engineering, protein production and therapeutics, vaccines and adjuvants, diagnostics and biomarkers, cancer, biofuels, microbial & yeast engineering, industrial fermentation, production of target chemical using biological processes, quantum sensors, biological computations units, and artificial intelligence / machine learning for life science applications, amongst other subject matters.

She has worked with emerging companies, universities, and larger companies. Representative matters include work done for Roche, Genentech, 10x Genomics, DuPont/Danisco/Genencor, Regeneron, Ariosa, the University of California, and Stanford University.

Terri was trained as an immunologist at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, where her doctoral research focused on natural killer cells and the early immune responses to HIV and SIV infection. She was a student fellow with Nobel Laureates Dr. Joseph Goldstein and Dr. Michael Brown, researching farnesylated ras proteins.

Terri earned a certificate in artificial intelligence in pharma and biotech from MIT Sloan School of Management and a certificate in artificial intelligence in health care from Harvard Medical School.

Terri is in leadership positions at Mintz. She founded and is Chair of the firm’s AI Life Sciences IP Group. She also serves as Co-chair of the Minority Attorneys & Agents affinity group and serves on the Equity Advisory Committee and Women’s Initiative Steering Committee. Terri formerly served on the firm’s Policy Committee.

Terri has been consistently recognized as a leading patent practitioner, earning rankings in Chambers USA for Patent Prosecution from 2022 through 2026. In 2026, she was named to Forbes’ inaugural America’s Top Women Lawyers list and Forbes’ America’s Top Lawyers list. She was also recognized as Managing IP’s Patent Prosecution Practitioner of the Year in 2025 and LMG Life Sciences’ Patent Strategy Attorney of the Year (California) in 2023.

In addition, Terri was named among Managing Intellectual Property’s Top 250 Women in IP from 2022 to 2026, selected for the National Law Journal’s Intellectual Property Trailblazers list, and recognized as a finalist for the California Legal Awards 2025 Women Leaders in Tech Law: Intellectual Property. Her other honors include being named one of the “100 Most Influential Women in Business in the Bay Area” by the San Francisco Business Times, earning annual recognition in IAM Patent 1000 among the world’s leading patent practitioners, and being recognized in The Legal 500 United States for Healthcare: Life Sciences.

viewpoints

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued an important update to its guidance on patent subject matter eligibility.

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The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued a pivotal guidance document, effective April 11, on the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools within patent and trademark practices.

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Read about the USPTO’s recent guidance on the use of AI tools by practitioners in connection with matters before the agency in the latest edition of AI: The Washington Report, a joint undertaking of Mintz and ML Strategies covering potential federal legislative, executive, and regulatory activities related to AI.

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A “picture” claim refers to a patent claim precisely tailored to track a particular product’s important advantages and features. When drafting a patent application, one should describe various embodiments of the invention and include both picture claims, tailored to those embodiments, and broader claims, to encompass groups of embodiments.

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News & Press

Press Release Thumbnail Mintz

Chambers USA has recognized 43 of Mintz’s practices and 88 of its attorneys in its 2025 guide to the country’s leading law firms. Of those featured in the guide, 17 attorneys and seven practice areas were awarded Chambers’ highest ranking, Band 1. The firm expanded its rankings this year with three new practice area listings and 17 attorneys recognized for the first time or in additional categories.

Press Release Thumbnail Mintz

BOSTON –Mintz announced today that 39 of its practices and 81 of its attorneys earned recognition in the 2023 edition of Chambers USA, a guide to the country’s leading law firms.

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podcasts

In this podcast, Una Ryan, a successful life sciences entrepreneur and investor, shares her fascinating story of how she came to the United States and became a successful life sciences entrepreneur, investor, and artist – and offers important tips to help entrepreneurs achieve success.
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Events & Speaking

Moderator
Oct
1
2026
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Apr
30
2026

From Agents to World Models: Why AI’s Next Leap Is Simulation

A co-hosted panel discussion and networking reception for AI founders, engineers, and investors.

The Cove Market Street San Francisco, CA

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Speaker
Oct
21
2025
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Moderator
Oct
16
2025

Trailblazers and Changemakers: Embracing the Entrepreneurial Mindset

Four Seasons East Palo Alto, 2050 University Ave., East Palo Alto, CA 94303

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Speaker
Mar
20
2024
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Speaker
Mar
11
2024
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Panelist
Moderator
May
9
2022
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Speaker
Apr
12
2022

Built with Biology Conference 2022

formerly SynBioBeta

Oakland Marriott City Center

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Speaker
Sep
30
2020

SynBioBeta 2020

View the Panel Recording

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Moderator
Oct
1
2019

SynBioBeta 2019

SVN West, 10 S Van Ness Ave, San Francisco, CA 94103

Moderator
Nov
1
2018

Wine & War Stories

Domenico Winery, 1697 Industrial Road, San Carlos, CA

Speaker
Oct
3
2018
Moderator
Oct
2
2018

Empowering Women Change-Makers in The Synthetic Biology Industry

Mission Bay Conference Center, San Francisco

Speaker
Oct
3
2017

SynBioBeta SF 2017

SynBioBeta

San Francisco, CA

Panelist
Jun
3
2015

Protecting Your IP in the Age of the Collaborative Economy

San Francisco Center for Economic Development

San Francisco, CA

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With over 25 years of experience, Terri plays a strategic role for her clients as she guides their patent strategy, portfolio management, and investments. Trained as an immunologist at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, where she earned a PhD in cellular and molecular medicine, she works with companies of all sizes in a wide range of life sciences, including artificial intelligence in life sciences and synthetic biology industries. She also has conducted hundreds of IP due diligence for companies and investors at all stages of investment. Terri is known for her creative, business-savvy solutions and strategic thinking.

Recognition & Awards

  • Forbes: America’s Top Lawyers list (2026)

  • Managing Intellectual Property: Finalist for National Practitioner of the Year – Patent Prosecution (2022, 2024); Named Patent Star (2024 – 2026)

  • Managing Intellectual Property: Recognized as one of the Top 250 Women in IP (2022 – 2026)

  • Forbes: Inaugural America’s Top Women Lawyers list (2026)

  • Chambers USA: Recognized for California – Intellectual Property: Patent Prosecution (2022 – 2026)

  • IAM Patent 1000: World’s Leading Patent Practitioners list (2020 – 2026)

  • Managing IP’s America Awards: Named Patent Practitioner of the Year (2025)

  • California Legal Awards: Named an Honoree in the 2025 Women Leaders in Tech Law, Intellectual Property category

  • Winner of Patent Strategy Attorney of the Year – California in LMG Life Sciences (2023)

  • National Law Journal: Named an Intellectual Property Trailblazer (2023)

  • The Legal 500 United States: Recognized for Healthcare: Life Sciences (2019 – 2023)

  • Business Today: Recognized in 10 Most Influential Intellectual Property Attorneys in California for Patent Prosecution list (2023)

  • Corporate Counsel: Selected as law firm honoree in the Collaborative Leadership category of Women, Influence & Power in Law Awards (2020)

  • San Francisco Business Times: Selected as one of the 100 Most Influential Women in Business in the Bay Area (2020)

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