Butamax v. Gevo

Overview

The Focal Point worked closely with Cooley lawyers over four years in various hearings and lawsuits to support Gevo, a leader in the engineering of isobutanol-based fuel products against its competitor in the marketplace, Butamax.

The Focal Point’s Role

TFP worked with Cooley and Gevo for helping to both defend against patent infringement allegations as well as to assert Gevo’s own patents. Given their established relationship and extensive knowledge of the technology, a key role for TFP was working closely with experts in the biochemical and bioengineering industry to create supporting graphics that would help simplify the complicated natural and engineered five-step process in ethanol and isobutanol production in yeast cells. Additionally, they worked closely with Cooley to develop the key issues and facts in their story and refine the legal arguments around enablement and written description.