R. Wilson "Trey" Powers III, Ph.D.

R. Wilson “Trey” Powers III, Ph.D., is a director in Sterne Kessler’s Trial & Appellate and Biotechnology & Chemical Practice Groups. Trey also co-chairs the firm's PTAB Trials practice. He has served as counsel on over 85 inter partes review and post grant review proceedings and has extensive experience litigating before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. Trey also works with clients on a variety of other matters including district court litigation, intellectual property strategic advice, licensing, US International Trade Commission investigations under §337, evaluating patent portfolios, drafting patent applications, and prosecuting interferences. He also manages the preparation of invalidity, non-infringement, and freedom-to-operate opinions. Trey has significant technical experience in the fields of aging, surgery, stem cell biology, microbiology, metabolic engineering, synthetic biology, and other areas of biotechnology.

Trey earned his B.A. in biology from the University of Virginia. Then he received his Ph.D. in molecular and cellular biology from the University of Washington and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. There, he developed high-throughput assays for measuring the life span of eukaryotic cells. Screens carried out using these methods led Trey and his colleagues to discover that reduction in TOR pathway signaling is one mechanism by which caloric restriction extends life span. These findings were published in the journals Science and Genes and Development. Ongoing work in several labs has confirmed that the methods identified by Trey extend life span in mammals. Trey earned his J.D. from American University Washington College of Law.

Trey is also actively engaged in the firm’s pro bono access to medicines program. He works with pro bono clients to bring patent challenges in developing countries to eliminate patents that are blocking access to essential medicines.