2026 Trademark Boot Camp - Washington, DC

Learn the Basics of Trademark Practice at our comprehensive Boot Camp - now in it's 16th year!

The program is a two-day comprehensive CLE program designed for new practitioners and others interested in learning the basics of trademark practice. Day one includes instructional sessions on trademark clearance, pre-filing considerations, trademark prosecution, and international trademark filing strategies. Day two focuses on disputes, including trademark investigations, cease-and-desist campaigns, Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) practice, and an introduction to trademark litigation.

Participants will participate in two hands-on workshops taught by experienced trademark practitioners: (1) ordering and analyzing search reports and preparing clearance opinions and (2) responding effectively to Office Actions. Representatives from the United States Patent and Trademark Office will serve as instructors for the Office Action response workshop, and the second day of the program will feature a panel of TTAB Judges and/or Interlocutory Attorneys.

Agenda - click here to view agenda

Registration Fees:

AIPLA Regular Member: $495
AIPLA Solo & Corporate Members: $395
AIPLA Junior & IP Paralegal Members: $295
AIPLA Government, Academic & Student Members: $99

Non-Members: $895

VENUE

Knobbe Martens
1717 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW - #900
Washington, DC 20006

HOTEL BLOCK

The Quincy Hotel DC
1823 L Street, NW 20036
Washington, DC 
202-428-4024

Room Rate:  $285 + tax (15.95%) per night. Special Rate Cut off date is JUNE 8, 2026. AIPLA has some rooms set aside and can assist attendees on a first-come, first-served basis.  Please contact us as soon as possible at aipla@aipla.org.

AIPLA does not contract with third party entities to book hotel accommodations.  Please use the link above or contact the The Quincy Hotel DC directly - (202) 428-4024 and ask for the AIPLA rate.

Thank you to our sponsors!

Speakers

• Arriola, Kimberly

  Pirkey Barber | Associate

  Kimberly Arriola focuses her area of practice on trademark law. Kimberly regularly advises clients on prosecution matters, including trademark selection, clearance, and prosecution of trademark applications in the United States and abroad. Kimberly also has experience assisting clients with domestic and international enforcement matters.
• Beres, Joel T.

  Stites & Harbison, PLLC | Member

  With more than 30 years of Intellectual Property experience, Joel Beres is a seasoned trial attorney who litigates complex IP disputes in both federal and state courts. A founding member and former co-chair of Stites & Harbison’s Intellectual Property & Technology Service Group, he manages all aspects of infringement litigation from trial strategy to appellate advocacy. He also maintains a robust practice in trademark and copyright prosecution, portfolio management, and licensing.
• Camacho, Alejandra

  Fross Zelnick Lehrman & Zissu, P.C. | Associate

  Alejandra Camacho is a 6-year associate at Fross Zelnick Lehrman & Zissu. Alejandra advises on trademark and copyright portfolio management across diverse jurisdictions for clients ranging from startups to multinational companies. She has experience handling disputes worldwide as well as negotiating worldwide agreements. Alejandra leads trademark strategies for clients internationally, including in Asia, Europe, and Latin America, overseeing oppositions, invalidation actions, negotiations, and other IP-related matters. Before joining Fross Zelnick, Alejandra clerked for a Federal District Judge in Mexico and practiced in the litigation group of a top IP law firm in Mexico. Her cross-border experience makes her a trusted ally for companies expanding into new markets worldwide.
• Davis, Theodore

  Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton, LLP | Partner

  Ted Davis is a partner in the Atlanta office of Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP, where he has practiced trademark, copyright, false advertising, and unfair competition law since 1990. He is a past member of the American Intellectual Property Law Association’s Board of Directors and currently serves as an editor of the A.I.P.L.A. Quarterly Law Journal. He also has served on the American Bar Association’s Board of Governors and the International Trademark Association’s Executive Committee. He frequently serves as an expert witness in trademark-related matters and is an adjunct professor at the Emory University School of Law. His articles on intellectual property subjects have appeared in such general-purpose journals as the Minnesota Law Review, the Ohio State Law Journal, the Wake Forest Law Review, the University of Illinois Law Review, the Washington & Lee Law Review, the Florida Law Review, and the Akron Law Review, as well as in specialized publications like the Trademark Reporter, the Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law, the Journal of Intellectual Property Law, and the Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal.
• Gelchinsky, Jonathan M.

  Pierce Atwood, LLP | Partner

  Jon Gelchinsky specializes in the protection and enforcement of trademark rights for businesses of all sizes. His diverse trademark practice includes counseling clients on the selection of new marks, clearance searching, U.S. and international registration, licensing, enforcement, oppositions, and litigation. He also assists clients with the protection, enforcement, and licensing of copyrights. Jon has represented a wide range of clients in a variety of industries, including consumer products, musical instruments, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, computer software and hardware, online media, telecommunications, publishing, education, motorcycles, sporting goods, and heavy machinery.
• Gilmore, Richard C.

  Maschoff Brennan | Shareholder

  Rick Gilmore is a founder of the IP boutique Maschoff Brennan Gilmore Israelsen & Mauriel. He focuses his practice on intellectual property law, including trademark and patent application preparation and prosecution in the United States and internationally. Rick works with companies across a wide range of industries, partnering closely with in-house counsel to develop, manage, and expand global trademark and patent portfolios. He regularly advises clients on trademark clearance, registration strategy, and enforcement, and is a frequent speaker on trademark and patent topics.
• Hernandez, Michael

  Pierce Atwood LLP | Attorney

  Michael Hernandez is an attorney in the IP & Technology Practice Group at Pierce Atwood LLP, a leading full-service law firm in New England. For the last 10 years, Mike has been providing skilled legal counsel to business and product owners on the usage, protection, and enforcement of trademark assets. Mike helps manage trademark portfolios consisting of registered and unregistered domestic and foreign trademarks for companies of all sizes in the technology, software, sporting goods, clothing, footwear, food, beer, marijuana, dairy, and consumer products industries.
• Kliebenstein, Heather

  Merchant & Gould | Managing Partner

  Heather Kliebenstein is the Managing Partner of Merchant & Gould, known for her trademark, copyright and false advertising litigation and Trademark Trial and Appeal Board work. This work includes strategy development, discovery, depositions, expert selection and strategy, summary judgment motions, pre-trial submissions, and first chair trial experience. Heather has handled hundreds of TTAB cases and taken dozens of those matters through the trial process, oral argument and final decision.
• McGowan, Shelby

  Kelly IP, LLP | Associate

  Shelby is an associate at Kelly IP, LLP where she represents trademark, copyright, and domain owners at all phases of the intellectual property lifecycle, with a focus on trademark disputes and litigation in federal courts and at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. She also crafts common-sense prosecution and enforcement strategies to secure strong and practical intellectual property protection. In addition to her practice at KIP, Shelby volunteers with the D.C. Bar’s Small Business Pro Bono Clinic and is a member of AIPLA, INTA, and an LCLD Pathfinder alumnus. Shelby earned her J.D. with honors from American University Washington College of Law, where she served on the American University Law Review and was Co-President of WCL’s Evening Law Student Association.
• Miller, Samuel

  Stites & Harbison, PLLC | Member

  Sam Miller is an experienced intellectual property litigator whose practice focuses on trademark, copyright, and patent disputes. Based in Stites & Harbison’s Nashville office, Sam has served as lead trial counsel in courts across the United States, representing a wide range of clients from celebrities and entrepreneurs to a billion-dollar start-up and one of the world’s leading medical device manufacturers.
• Miranda, John

  Cowan, Liebowitz & Latman, P.C. | Associate

  John S. Miranda is an IP attorney focused on all aspects of trademark and copyright practice, including prosecution, contested matters and agreements. Before private practice, he served as a USPTO Trademark Examining Attorney for over 5 years.
• Olson, Shana

  Sterne Kessler Goldstein & Fox PLLC | Counsel

  Shana L. Olson is counsel at Sterne Kessler Goldstein & Fox PLLC, where she focuses on trademark protection as part of a multidisciplinary brand strategy. She advises clients on U.S. and international trademark clearance, prosecution, enforcement, and portfolio management, with significant experience in inter partes proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.
• Robinson, Danae

  Pirkey Barber PLLC | Associate

  Danae Robinson focuses her practice on trademark and copyright law. Danae regularly advises clients on contested proceedings, global trademark clearance, licensing, and the management and protection of domestic and international trademark portfolios. She assists clients with various enforcement and domain issues, including the protection of their marks through UDRP proceedings.
• Schumacher, AJ

  Kelly, IP | Partner

  AJ’s practice primarily focuses on all aspects of trademark law, ranging from counseling, prosecution, and global portfolio management to enforcement and other contentious matters, including disputes before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, both in the U.S. and internationally. He also has significant experience handling domain name disputes under the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP), as well as crafting global domain name acquisition strategies. In addition, AJ has handled various copyright, due diligence, and advertising matters. AJ has worked with clients of all sizes, from beginning-stage startups to unicorns and Fortune 5 companies, and some of the world’s most famous brands across various industries, such as the professional sports, fashion, beauty, fintech, finance, telehealth, and insurance industries.
• Stottele, Mary

  Fross Zelnick Lehrman & Zissu P.C. | Senior Associate

  Mary Stottele is a senior associate at Fross Zelnick Lehrman & Zissu P.C. where she advises clients in intellectual property matters relating to brand and design protection. Her practice focuses on availability, acquisition, defense, and enforcement of both trademark and design patent rights. Mary manages trademark and design patent portfolios for clients ranging from startups and emerging companies to large multinational companies across diverse industries including beauty, fashion, luxury brands, technology, consumer products, food and beverage, and pharmaceuticals.
• Smith-Carra, Heather

  Banner Witcoff | Attorney

  As an advocate for brand protection, Heather works with clients around the world to manage, protect, and enforce their trademark, copyright, and trade dress rights.
• Stefanou, Constance

  Morgan Lewis | Associate

  Constance Stefanou focuses her practice on protection and enforcement of matters related to trademark, false advertising, unfair competition, copyright, anticounterfeiting, and customs in the United States and globally. Connie advises Fortune 100 companies and emerging businesses across different industries on all aspects of intellectual property (IP) portfolio management at a global level, including issues involving trademark selection, clearance, registration, maintenance, and enforcement. Connie assists clients in protecting their valuable brands through administrative proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board and in defending such actions brought by third parties.
• Taylor, Clint

  Kelly IP, LLP | Partner

  Clint focuses his practice on trademark and copyright counseling, prosecution, enforcement, and litigation. He has spent his career helping clients of all sizes navigate the trademark registration process and successfully enforcing those rights. He provides practical advice to clients to assist them in selecting and enforcing their trademarks consistent with their goals.

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