Mike Rivard

Experience the TriUnity Advantage

Mike Rivard

Managing Member

Mike Rivard has more than twenty years of senior management experience in the life sciences industry. He has been directly responsible for corporate legal, intellectual property, business development, business strategy, human resources, and corporate communications functions in a variety of positions at public and private biotechnology companies including ArQule, Synta Pharmaceuticals, VaxDesign, Galenea, and Avaxia Biologics. Mike also served as Associate General Counsel, Intellectual Property at the University of Massachusetts where he established a system-wide technology transfer program while supporting all technology transfer activities. Most recently, Mike held the position of General Counsel and Vice President, Corporate Development at Avaxia Biologics, an angel-funded, clinical-stage biotechnology company developing antibodies for gastrointestinal diseases. Mike began his career at the law firm of Palmer & Dodge (now Locke Lord) in Boston. Mike is credited with 50+ business transactions, including licenses, collaborations, mergers & acquisitions, public and private financings, and university-industry technology transfer agreements. Mike holds a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry, summa cum laude, from Bowdoin College and a juris doctor degree, Order of the Coif, from UCLA School of Law, where he also served as an Articles Editor for the UCLA Law Review. Mike is licensed to practice law in Massachusetts.

Career highlights

Raised $20M in preferred stock and bridge note financing rounds over three years with CEO at Avaxia Biologics. Investors included a national syndicate of angel investment groups, individual investors, and AbbVie Ventures.
Led Galenea deal team for extension and expansion of collaboration with Otsuka Pharmaceuticals. Increased committed funding from $50 million to $90 million while extending term from 5 years to 7 years. Gained additional rights to collaboration assets, significantly increasing downstream value captured by Galenea. Secured low interest note to fund capital equipment purchases.
Primary attorney and lead negotiator for ArQule in $120 million committed funding deal with Pfizer for combinatorial chemistry libraries. At the time, this was the largest deal in the chemistry services business.
Led VaxDesign deal team for $60 million self-managed sale of VaxDesign to Sanofi Pasteur.
Led ArQule deal team for $100 million acquisition of Camitro Corporation by ArQule.
Served as General Counsel and core team member at ArQule for two public offerings, raising a combined total of over $70 million.
Developed and implemented intellectual property strategy and managed patents at ArQule, Galenea, VaxDesign and Avaxia, resulting in key issued patents on core technologies and products while improving efficiency by controlling patent-related costs.