Five minutes with ... Arlene Chow, partner at Latham & Watkins

Managing IP is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 1-2 Paris Gardens, London, SE1 8ND

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2025

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

Five minutes with ... Arlene Chow, partner at Latham & Watkins

Chow_Arlene_83147_0003_NewYork_MIT.jpg

Each week Managing IP speaks to a different IP lawyer about their life and career

Welcome to the first instalment of Managing IP’s new series, ‘Five minutes with’, where we learn more about IP lawyers on a personal as well as professional level. First up is Arlene Chow, partner at Latham & Watkins in New York and global vice chair of the firm’s healthcare & life sciences industry group.

Someone asks you at a party what you do for a living. What do you say?

I litigate pharma and biotech patents.

Talk us through a typical working day.

I get up at 6.30am and do the first walk with our golden doodle, Evie. I return to our apartment, wake up the kids for school, glance through email over breakfast and provide direction to team members. I then combine walking my youngest daughter to school with bringing Evie to the Madison Park dog run. When I return, I take a morning workout class (cardio dance or spinning) and once I'm at a stopping point with email, I walk to our midtown office.

There are far better food options at or near work than home, so I use lunch as an incentive to get into the office. I also really like working at the office. I like chatting with folks in-person at the office. 

I leave work at 6pm, cook dinner for the family, and after dinner I am typically on my laptop again for a while. My husband takes care of the final evening walk with Evie, so I watch Netflix or Rakuten Viki (for Asian dramas) until I sleep.

What are you working on at the moment? Does one big piece of work usually take priority or are you juggling multiple things?

I am always juggling multiple pharma or biotech matters that are at different stages. Currently, I have matters at pre-litigation due diligence, fact discovery, and expert reports. If I have a matter closer to trial or a hearing, that takes priority over other matters.

What is the most exciting aspect of your role and what is the most stressful?

I love going to trial, and I love preparing a case for trial.  Everything comes together and it is so satisfying to see how a case ultimately plays itself out. The most stressful aspects of my job tend to be juggling urgent questions from clients who understandably need feedback/input “now” or ASAP to provide to their superiors or CFOs.

Tell us the key characteristics that make a successful IP lawyer.

The ability to simplify with direct messaging and effective graphics. I truly believe in keeping it simple.

What is the most common misconception about IP?

That you need to know the science inside out to litigate it well. Yes, having a scientific background is helpful, but I rely on team members, including Latham’s PhD/JDs and technical analysts, to truly dissect the science. I need to know enough of the science to litigate it effectively.

What or who inspires you?

My husband. He is super smart, an amazing spouse and a wonderful father. We have been together for over 25 years, and I continually admire how he maintains the right balance of career and personal life.

If you weren’t an IP lawyer, what would you be doing?

I would be a surgeon. I have pretty good hands and like making decisions under pressure; so using my hands just to type on a keyboard all day sometimes seems to be a waste.

Any advice you would give your younger self?

Relax more. Play a lot more tennis, get a net game, master a backhand slice, and have a varied serve.

more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

Leaders at US law firms explain what attorneys can learn from AI cases involving Meta and Anthropic, and why the outcomes could guide litigation strategies
Attorneys reveal the trademark and copyright trends they’ve noticed within the first half of 2025
Senior leaders at TE Connectivity and Clarivate explain how they see the future of innovation
A new action filed by Nokia against Asus and a landmark ruling on counterfeits by South Africa’s Supreme Court were also among the top talking points
Counsel explain how they’re navigating patent prosecution matters and highlight key takeaways from Federal Circuit cases
A partner who joined Fenwick alongside two others explains what drew her to the firm and her hopes for growth in Boston
The England and Wales High Court has granted Kirkland & Ellis client Samsung interim declaratory relief in its ongoing FRAND dispute with ZTE
A UDRP decision that found in favour of a small business in a domain name dispute could encourage more businesses to take a stand in ‘David v Goliath’ cases
In Iconix v Dream Pairs, the Supreme Court said the Court of Appeal was wrong to interfere with an earlier ruling, prompting questions about the appeal court’s remit
Chris Moore at HGF reflects on the ‘spirit of collegiality’ that led to an important ruling in G1/24, a case concerning how European patent claims should be interpreted
Gift this article