George A. LoBiondo, Partner

Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP is pleased to announce that, effective January 1, 2023, Andrew D. Cohen, Diana M. Conner, Craig W. Dent, David Kleban, Thomas P. Kurland, and George A. LoBiondo will become partners of the firm, and Lachlan S. Campbell-Verduyn, Dana B. Fritz, Clinton W. Morrison, Zachary P. Novetsky, Christina M. Seda-Acosta, and Julie A. Simeone will become counsel.

Andrew D. Cohen, Ph.D., a trained organic chemist, practices in the firm’s Litigation department. He is an accomplished patent litigator, with over 15 years of experience in patent law. Mr. Cohen focuses his practice on life science patent litigation, where he leverages his scientific background to translate complicated technology into easy-to-understand terms. He has represented innovators in Hatch-Waxman and Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA) cases, and has represented clients in inter partes reviews (IPR) proceedings before the patent office. A well-rounded litigator, Mr. Cohen also represents clients in complex commercial disputes (including arbitrations) and in the defense of consumer class actions. He maintains an active pro bono practice in areas of civil rights, immigration, and housing. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Cohen served as a law clerk to the Hon. Cathy Seibel of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. He received his J.D. from Fordham University School of Law, a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry and M.A. from Johns Hopkins University, and an A.B. in Chemistry from Princeton University.

Diana M. Conner practices in the firm’s Litigation department, where she focuses on complex commercial litigation before both trial and appellate courts, as well as arbitration panels. Ms. Conner represents clients on a variety of matters, including disputes involving major financial, manufacturing, pharmaceutical, and media companies.Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Conner served as a law clerk to the Hon. Colleen McMahon of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. She received her J.D. from Stanford Law School and her B.S. from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Craig W. Dent practices in the firm’s Corporate department. Mr. Dent represents clients in a wide variety of corporate, transactional and restructuring matters. His transactional practice is primarily focused on mergers and acquisitions, private equity, corporate finance (borrower and lender-side representations), and venture capital transactions. His clients include private equity investment firms, hedge funds, investment advisers, not-for-profits, boutique investment banks, lending institutions, and public and private companies in the manufacturing, insurance, and technology industries. Mr. Dent received his J.D. from New York University where he was Executive Editor of the NYU Journal of Law and Business and a Robert McKay Scholar. He received his A.B., magna cum laude, from Dartmouth College.

David Kleban practices in the firm’s Litigation department, where he represents clients in a variety of commercial and other complex disputes. Mr. Kleban has assisted major media entities in the enforcement of their intellectual property rights; has represented clients in disputes relating to pharmaceutical products and medical devices; and has advised and represented investment firms and financial guaranty insurers in litigation arising from structured finance transactions. Mr. Kleban received his J.D. from Harvard Law School, cum laude, and his B.A. from Duke University, magna cum laude, where he was elected to the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society.

Thomas P. Kurland practices in the firm’s Litigation department. His primary practice areas include products liability, brand protection, and commercial tort. Mr. Kurland routinely defends major manufacturers against products liability claims in both state and federal courts, including multi-district litigations. He has extensive experience with all phases of products liability litigation from initial case assessment through trial, and has served as both national and local counsel defending claims related to pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and consumer goods. Mr. Kurland also maintains an active anti-counterfeiting practice, focusing primarily on FDA-regulated products. He has successfully seized many thousands of counterfeits from illicit suppliers, obtained millions in judgments and penalties for his clients, and assisted law enforcement with subsequent prosecutions of the offenders. Mr. Kurland received his J.D. from Cornell Law School and his B.A., cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania.

George A. LoBiondo practices in the firm’s Litigation department, where he focuses on complex commercial disputes, as well as internal investigations and matters adverse to government entities. He also has extensive appellate experience litigating antitrust, commercial, and criminal issues before federal and state appeals courts. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. LoBiondo served as a law clerk to the Hon. John F. Keenan of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. He received his J.D., cum laude, from Fordham University School of Law, where he served as Editor-in-Chief of the Fordham Law Review. Mr. LoBiondo received his B.A., magna cum laude in cursu honorum, from Fordham University.

Lachlan S. Campbell-Verduyn, Ph.D., practices in the firm’s Litigation department, where she represents clients in intellectual property matters, complex commercial disputes, and investigations. She has extensive experience representing biotech and pharmaceutical companies in patent litigations on a wide range of subject matters, and has litigated cases brought under the Hatch-Waxman Act, as well as the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA). From 2019 to 2020, Ms. Campbell-Verduyn served as a law clerk to the Hon. Sharon L. Gleason of the United States District Court for the District of Alaska. She has a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, in the Netherlands, where she completed her doctoral research in the group of Nobel Prize winner, Ben Feringa. Ms. Campbell-Verduyn received her J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School and B.Sc., with honors and distinctions, from Mount Allison University.

Dana B. Fritz practices in the firm’s Corporate department, where she focuses on international capital markets, as well as general corporate and securities law representation. Ms. Fritz represents institutional banking clients and non-U.S. companies in a wide variety of transactions related to cross-border financings and reorganizations, including public and private offerings of equity and debt, exchange listings, spin-offs, as well as tender, exchange and rights offers. In addition, her practice includes venture capital and private placements, merger and acquisition transactions, and commercial contracts. She also advises companies in connection with Securities Act and Securities Exchange Act filings, Hart-Scott-Rodino filings and compliance and corporate governance. Ms. Fritz received her J.D., cum laude, from Fordham University School of Law, where she was a member of the Fordham Law Review. She received her B.A., cum laude, from Binghamton University.

Clinton W. Morrison practices in the firm's Litigation department, where he focuses on a wide variety of practice areas, from complex commercial disputes to intellectual property matters to high-stakes art law cases. Mr. Morrison represents clients through all stages of litigation, including pre-litigation counseling, mediation, trial, and appeal. He currently serves as the Secretary of the Federal Bar Council’s Public Service Committee. Prior to joining the firm, he served as a Law Clerk to the Hon. Amalya Lyle Kearse of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Mr. Morrison received his J.D., magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School and B.A, magna cum laude, from Georgetown University.

Zachary P. Novetsky practices in the firm’s Real Estate department, where he focuses on all aspects of real estate law, with a special focus on commercial leasing, representing both landlords and tenants in office and retail leases. Mr. Novetsky has extensive experience with purchase and sale agreements, sublease transactions, management agreements, brokerage agreements, surrender agreements, telecommunications agreements, construction agreements, access and license agreements, and other transactional real estate matters. He was named to the 2021-2023 editions of Best Lawyers®: Ones to Watch, which recognizes outstanding professional excellence in private practice by attorneys who have typically been in practice for up to 10 years. Mr. Novetsky received his J.D., cum laude, from Fordham University School of Law and B.A, magna cum laude, from New York University.

Christina M. Seda-Acosta practices in the firm’s Litigation department, where she focuses on complex commercial litigation, including breach of contract and fraud disputes, as well as internal investigations. Her extensive and diverse experience ranges from the representation of a Fortune 100 pharmaceutical company in a fraud and breach of contract action, to the defense of an art advisor in a dispute concerning a valuable gem purchased by the client at an auction. Ms. Seda-Acosta has led a number of Diversity Initiatives at the firm. As a long-standing member of the Diversity Committee she developed the TEAK Fellowship-Patterson Belknap Internship Program, designed to increase diversity in the legal profession by mentoring and encouraging minority students with an interest in law. Outside of the firm, Ms. Seda-Acosta serves on the Board of the TEAK Fellowship, and on the Board’s DEIB Subcommittee. In 2019, she was named as “TEAK Volunteer of the Year” by the organization. From 2016 to 2017, Ms. Seda-Acosta served as a law clerk to the Hon. Nelson S. Román of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Ms. Seda-Acosta received her J.D., from Yale Law School where she served as Co-Director of the Advocacy for Children and Youth Clinic, and Vice President of the Black Law Students Association. She received her B.A., with honors, from Trinity College.

Julie A. Simeone practices in the firm’s Litigation department, where she focuses on intellectual property matters, including copyright law, patent litigation, trademark and trade secrets litigation, and false advertising litigation. Ms. Simeone has represented major media companies, book publishers, and software companies—including at trials and hearings—in federal court. From 2016 to 2017, she served as a law clerk to the Hon. Eric N. Vitaliano of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Ms. Simeone received her J.D., cum laude, from New York University School of Law, M.A. in Human Rights from Columbia University, and B.A., magna cum laude, from Boston University.