LAW 4705 - Bioscience Business Innovation Program

The BBIP Organizers will assign Zarb students and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory scientists to interdisciplinary teams (each a “BBIP Team”). Over the course of several months, each team will work collaboratively to develop a bioscience innovation and prepare a pitch presentation for a panel of judges. Each law student will be integrated into a BBIP Team and serve as the team’s legal advisor. In this capacity, law students will attend team meetings and offer strategic legal guidance on matters such as intellectual property protection, regulatory compliance, and business structure and governance. Legal advice will be provided both orally and in writing, including the preparation of at least three substantial client memoranda, each a minimum of ten pages in length. In this advisory role, law students will be critical in helping their teams identify, understand, and address key legal considerations inherent to the commercialization of bioscience innovations.

With the support of their student legal advisors, BBIP Teams will refine their innovations and pitch materials in preparation for an in-person program during the week of March 16. From March 16 to 19, teams will participate in a series of intensive skills workshops organized by Zarb. On March 20, each team will present their innovation to a panel of expert judges, showcasing both the scientific and commercial viability of their projects, as well as the legal strategies underpinning their proposed ventures.

To prepare for their role as legal advisors, law students will be required to attend weekly class sessions and BBIP Team meetings, engage with assigned readings and course materials, and complete a series of online modules covering critical topics at the intersection of law, business, and science, including:

·        Business Formation and Business Models

·        Law and the Regulatory Environment

·        Bioethics

·        IP Ins and Outs: Patenting Life Sciences Inventions

·        From Lab to Market

·        Healthcare Analytics

·        Biotech Financing, Venture Capital, and Private Equity

·        Global Considerations

·        Public Policy and Global Markets

·        Supply Chain Overview

This interdisciplinary simulation course is designed to equip law students with practical, real-world skills necessary to provide proactive, effective, and client-centered legal counsel to innovators and entrepreneurs engaged in bringing products to market. Through immersive, experiential learning, students will refine their research, analytical reasoning, written and oral communication, and client management abilities, while learning to deliver legal services that add value and build trusted advisor relationships.

More specifically, the course will emphasize the development of professional competencies essential for transactional and advisory practice, including:

1.      Understanding the client’s business, technology, and industry context;

2.      Cultivating effective communication and relationship-building skills;

3.      Delivering efficient and client-centered legal solutions;

4.      Adopting a strategic, proactive approach to legal advising; and

5.      Upholding the highest standards of professionalism and ethical conduct.

In addition to substantive knowledge and practical experience, the course offers law students a pathway for career exploration and professional development in the fields of intellectual property, healthcare law, and the biotechnology and biosciences sectors. Students will also benefit from the following opportunities:

·        Fulfillment of a Writing or Experiential requirement

·        Designation as a Bioscience Business Innovation Fellow

·        Networking and collaboration with IP attorneys, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory scientists, and Zarb MBA students

·        Exposure to venture capitalists, investors, and other key stakeholders within the innovation ecosystem, potentially facilitating future career connections and collaborations

Prerequisites & Notes
COURSE Acceptance Criteria

            Applicants must fulfill the following criteria for acceptance into the program:

• A current cumulative grade point average (“GPA”) of 3.4 or higher
• Submission of a statement of interest highlighting the applicant’s fit for the course, including the qualifications and background the applicant brings to the course
• Commitment to attend the entire week of day-long sessions from March 16^th-20^th, 2025, at Hofstra University

View Course Offering(s):

Fall 2025

January 2026

Spring 2026