Jorge Goldstein trained for a career in molecular biology and biochemistry before becoming a patent attorney, a background that positioned him to help shape patent law for the biotech industry throughout his 40-year career. In his new book Patenting Life: Tales from the Front Lines of Intellectual Property and the New Biology, Goldstein offers a history of the biotech industry through the lens of the critical patent battles that shaped the landscape. We spoke to Goldstein, founder of the law firm Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox, about the industry’s critical patent battles, his new book, and how he is working today to use patents as instruments for social and economic justice.