HAMPTON, N.J., March 01, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Celldex Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLDX) today announced the appointment of James J. Marino, J.D., to the Company’s Board of Directors. Mr. Marino was with the global law firm of Dechert LLP for 28 years, where he served as Managing Partner of the Princeton, N.J. office. His practice focused on the representation of leading life sciences companies, both privately- and publicly-held, in a broad range of corporate, transactional and finance matters. He will serve as the Chairman of the Compensation Committee.

“Jim’s wealth of experience advising numerous life science companies provides us additional perspective on the current healthcare business environment,” said Larry Ellberger, Chairman of the Board of Directors at Celldex Therapeutics. “His knowledge and guidance will be important to Celldex as we advance our pipeline through clinical development and explore multi-drug combinations to address unmet patient needs.”

Mr. Marino currently serves on the Board of Trustees of Wake Forest University and Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center and on the Board of Directors of Onconova Therapeutics, Inc. He previously served on the Board of Directors of Pharmacopeia, Inc. He has also worked in advisory capacities and on the boards of multiple non-profit organizations, including Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital. Additionally, Mr. Marino is a co-founder of BioNJ, the trade association of biotechnology companies based in New Jersey, which he represented from its inception. Mr. Marino received his B.A., his M.B.A. and his J.D. from Rutgers University.

About Celldex Therapeutics, Inc.
Celldex is developing targeted therapeutics to address devastating diseases for which available treatments are inadequate. Our pipeline is built from a proprietary portfolio of antibodies and immunomodulators used alone and in strategic combinations to create novel, disease-specific therapies that induce, enhance or suppress the body's immune response. Visit www.celldex.com.