SANFORD J. HILLSBERG, 63
FIRM: TroyGould PC
LAW SCHOOL: Harvard Law School
SELECTED CLIENTS: CytRx Corp., ImmunoCellular Therapeutics Ltd., RXi Pharmaceuticals Corp.
Biggest Case: Representing Mead Corp. in contesting a $1 billion-plus hostile takeover bid by Occidental Petroleum.
Best Career Moment: Organizing and later representing Medco Research Inc., which successfully developed major cardiovascular drugs, became a New York Stock Exchange-listed company and was sold in a major transaction to King Pharmaceuticals.
Worst Career Moment: Watching the 1986 Tax Reform Act abruptly end my then-principal practice of real estate syndication law.
Highlight of Past Year: Representing ImmunoCellular Therapeutics in intellectual property, equity financing and agreements with 25 medical centers in preparation for a trial of its brain tumor vaccine that is now under way.
The Secret to Closing a Deal: Understanding and addressing the spoken and unspoken objectives of the parties on the other side.
If I Weren’t an Attorney: I would like to run a pharmaceutical company developing new medicines for major illnesses.
My Colleagues Don’t Know: About my keen interest in the aerospace field and manned space flight.