• Entrepreneur, innovator, scientist, mentor to women founders, angel investor

• Internationally ranked patent agent with 20 years of experience in the life sciences sector

• Real estate investing & hands dirty with renovation projects in lake country

BIO

Jennifer is an internationally-ranked patent agent with 20 years of experience in the life sciences sector.  She advises companies of all sizes, from startups to multi-nationals, on IP strategy and portfolio management, patentability and freedom-to-operate issues, due diligence, and the prosecution of patent applications pertaining to pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and diagnostics. 

Jennifer is a former partner with Canada's largest law firm, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, and continues to serve as Senior Counsel to the firm while also co-founding her own tech start-up, Fortress IAM™. Recognizing a global unmet need, Jennifer and her co-founder built Fortress IAM™, the first 'all-in-one' intangibles management solution designed to help underserved SMEs manage - and gain valuable business insights from - their IP, contracts, and data, assets that drive value for all innovative companies. 

Jennifer obtained her PhD in Pharmacology from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Her research involved experimentation in the areas of pharmacology, therapeutics, cell signaling, immunology and organic chemistry. In particular, her research focused on the treatment of fibrosis and inflammation and the connection between the two, a fitting background for an orthobiologics company. During her graduate training, she had the opportunity to conduct an Industrial Research Rotation at a global pharmaceutical company, which sparked her interest in the business side of research and intellectual property. 

An innovator and entrepreneur at heart, Jennifer is a real estate investor and angel investor, and has co-founded and invested in multiple startups. She loves to spend time teaching, mentoring and sharing her knowledge with entrepreneurs and especially with women founders. On weekends, she can be found on the lake or getting her hands dirty in a renovation project.