Melissa Santos, Ph.D., focuses on patent prosecution, patent litigation, and client counseling in the areas of chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and materials science. She has technical experience with polymer chemistry, fabrication and characterization of materials, and protein and genetic engineering.
Melissa worked on patent prosecution and various aspects of patent litigation during her time as a summer associate at Finnegan. She previously served as a legal intern in the patents group at a global pharmaceutical company, conducting inventorship interviews with scientists and providing research related to service and licensing agreements.
Melissa gained significant technical experience through her graduate and undergraduate research. As a Ph.D. student, she developed a method to determine the molecular interactions of liquid transport in polymer films. Melissa also developed woven nanofiber/particle water filtration membranes for the chemical breakdown of organic pollutants in industrial wastewater. Her undergraduate research includes studies on the effects of mechanical stretch on fetal lung development and determining optimal process conditions for disposable bioreactors.
Melissa assists with pro bono representation in immigration law, including obtaining asylum for political refugees. While in law school, she worked as a student attorney for the Human Trafficking Clinic, helping to provide legal services to victims of human trafficking.
