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May 13, 2021
In a complaint originally filed in Virginia’s state courts, chemical researcher Dr. Mark Van Dyke alleged that Wake Forest University, along with the company Van Dyke co-founded and several employees of that company, engaged in a conspiracy to take advantage of Dr. Van Dyke’s pioneering research in keratin, “the proteins that make up wool, hair, and fingernails.” The case was removed to federal court Wednesday.
The complaint detailed a purported business conspiracy by KeraNetics, a company founded by Dr. Van Dyke, Wake Forest, and several KeraNetics employees to take advantage of Dr. Van Dyke’s intellectual property. The complaint enumerated a body of patents assigned to Wake Forest, at that time Dr. Van Dyke’s employer, as a condition of employment. However, the plaintiff also explained the existence of the Keratin Know-How and Keratin Library, compilations of research materials, papers, patents, and general knowledge that Dr. Van Dy