Robert A. Armitage

Overview

Robert A. Armitage became senior vice president and general counsel for Eli Lilly and Company, as well as joined the company's policy committee, in January 2003. He joined the company as vice president and general patent counsel, Lilly Research Laboratories, in October 1999. Armitage was born in Port Huron, Mich., and received a bachelor of arts degree in physics and mathematics in 1970 from Albion College. He received a master's degree in physics from the University of Michigan in 1971 and a juris doctor from the University of Michigan Law School in 1973. Prior to joining Lilly, Armitage was chief intellectual property counsel for The Upjohn Company from 1983 to 1993. He also was a partner in the Washington, D.C., office of Vinson & Elkins LLP from 1993 to 1999. Armitage is a member and a past president of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) and the Association of Corporate Patent Counsel (ACPC). He is also a past chair of the Patent Committee of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), the National Council of Intellectual Property Law Associations (NCIPLA), the Intellectual Property Committee of the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), and the Intellectual Property Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan. He has served as an adjunct professor of law at George Washington University, as a member of the board of directors of Human Genome Sciences, Inc., and as president of the board of directors of the Hospice of Southwest Michigan, Inc.