IP Protection & Strategy
Intellectual property has always fascinated me. Before law school, I studied music and then worked as a music critic, where I learned about royalty streams for songwriters. In law school, I spent the summer between my first and second years studying entertainment law at Southwestern Law School. I spent the next summer writing a law review article about the relationship between American trademark and copyright law and the European concept of artists’ moral rights, which was published in the Spring 2006 issue of the Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment and Technology Law. I also took patent law, even though I don’t have a science background, so I could understand the concepts.
In the 20 years since graduation, intellectual property has been significant part of my career, particularly my in-house career. At my first in-house job, I was tasked with writing cease and desist letters to companies infringing our trademarks online, which resulted in the cessation of a lot of infringing activity and the tendering of several infringing web domains. I also helped the marketing department license songs, animated characters and other IP. In my next in-house job, where I was head of legal, I performed international trademark searches and registered US trademarks. I also advised the marketing team on how to avoid infringement and which trademarks and copyrights to register, wrote and responded to cease and desist letters for trademark and copyright matters, helped the company license IP from entities as diverse as Disney and the NHL, and managed a team tasked with reviewing customer submitted designs for infringment.
When I became general counsel, I took ownership of a portfolio of patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets and the company’s strategy for protecting them and maximizing their value. I also developed policies and safeguards to ensure the company did not infringe on the intellectual property of others. Whether you need someone to handle a one-off infringement or registration or help your company develop a long-term strategy, I can help.
Here are some IP-related services I can provide:
Advising on Trademarks, Copyrights, Trade Secrets and patents and finding you the right patent attorney to draft and file your patent application (because I am not a patent attorney).
Writing and responding to infringement notices and cease and desist letters
Searching and registering trademarks and registering copyrights
Developing, drafting, and implementing a Digital Millennium Copyright (DMCA) Policy for websites with user-generated content.
Drafting, reviewing, and negotiating work made for hire agreements and IP assignment agreements.
Drafting, reviewing, and negotiating non-disclosure agreements to protect trade secrets.
Drafting, reviewing, and negotiating licenses for songs, animated characters, videos, and other IP.
Drafting, reviewing, and negotiating song-publishing agreements and recording contracts.
Drafting, reviewing, and negotiating name, likeness, and image releases.
Helping your company develop an IP strategy to protect and maximize your IP portfolio.
These are a few of the IP-related services I can provide. If you have an intellectual property question or need that is not on this list, please reach out and I will help you or refer you to someone who can.