Synopses & Reviews
Forced out of his high-powered Manhattan law firm and stuck in a dead-end solo practice, Michael Seeley, the tough-but-wounded hero of
Errors and Omissions, cannot say no when his estranged brother, Leonard, head of research at upstart biotech Vaxtek, Inc., flies in from California to beg him to take over the companys lawsuit for patent infringement of its pathbreaking AIDS vaccine after the sudden death of the lead trial lawyer. The financial and moral stakes of the case are staggering, and Seeley suspects that murder cannot be ruled out as a hardball litigation tactic of big-pharma adversary St. Gall Laboratories.
As Seeley travels between San Francisco and Silicon Valley to prepare for trial, dark facts surface concerning the vaccines discovery by Vaxtek scientist Alan Steinhardt and its alleged theft by St. Gall researcher Lily Warren. Ethical quandaries deepen into mortal danger as the trial, under the stern prodding of federal judge Ellen Farnsworth, rushes to its unexpected end. A timely and fascinating look at how the law operates at its most arcane yet financially consequential, A Patent Lie is further evidence that Paul Goldstein is an emerging master of the legal thriller.
Synopsis
Michael Seeley, the tough-but-wounded hero of Errors and Omissions, has resigned from his high-powered Manhattan law firm to work as a sole practitioner in Buffalo. Business is slow, so when his estranged brother, Leonard, a doctor, flies in from California to beg him to take on a suit for patent infringement on an AIDS vaccine, Michael is in little position to say no. He agrees to take the case, replacing the former lead lawyer who apparently committed suicide. Trading the dismal climes of Buffalo for the sun-kissed landscape of Silicon Valley, Seeley soon finds out the financial stakes are so staggering that murder can scarcely be ruled out as a hardball tactic.
About the Author
PAUL GOLDSTEIN is the Lillick Professor of Law at Stanford Law School and is widely recognized as one of the countrys leading authorities on intellectual property law. He is regularly included in The Best Lawyers in America and testifies before congressional committees and international government meetings on intellectual property issues. A Patent Lie is the sequel to his first novel, Errors and Omissions. A New York native, he now lives outside San Francisco.