Speakers

Brown, Neri, Smith & Khan, LLP (BNSK) | Partner

Ryan Abbott, MD, JD, PhD, Solicitor Advocate, FCIArb, is partner at Brown, Neri, Smith & Khan, LLP, a consultant solicitor at Keystone Law, a mediator and arbitrator at JAMS, Inc. and Professor of Law and Health Sciences at University of Surrey School of Law.

Akhlaghi, Babak

NovoTech Patent Firm | Founding Director

Babak Akhlaghi is the Founding Director of NovoTech Patent Firm, a Washington, D.C.-based intellectual property law firm focused on helping startups, emerging companies, and technology-driven businesses build and leverage patent portfolios to support fundraising, commercialization, licensing, acquisitions, and long-term competitive advantage.

Anoff, Ali

Procter & Gamble | Director & Assistant General Counsel - Patents

Ali Anoff is Director and Assistant General Counsel at Procter & Gamble. She is the primary patent attorney for renowned brands such as Olay® skin care, as well as Old Spice®, Secret®, and Native® antiperspirant and deodorants. Ali provides strategic legal counsel to the business to create and protect global intellectual property assets. Her practice focuses on IP strategy development, preparation and prosecution of global patent applications, conducting freedom-to-practice assessments and enforcement.

Bernstein, Frank

Squire Patton Boggs (US) LLP | Partner

Frank Bernstein is a partner in the Intellectual Property & Technology Group at Squire Patton Boggs (US) LLP. Frank uses his extensive US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and district court experience to think outside the box, helping clients obtain and defend challenging patents.

Binns, Micheal

Meta | Associate General Counsel, Patents, Licensing, and Open Source

Micheal Binns is an AI and innovation executive focused on building and advising AI-powered businesses, who until August 2026 served as Director and Associate General Counsel at Meta Platforms, where as Head of Patents and Trade Secrets he led global patent, trade secret, design, and licensing strategy across artificial intelligence, AR/VR/MR, wearables, and social platforms.

Blake, Mark

Medtronic | Head of IP Litigation

Boelling, Markus

Mitscherlich PartmbB | Senior Partner

Dr. Markus B. Bölling is a German attorney-at-law and Senior Partner with Mitscherlich PartmbB in Munich. He advises national and international clients on the enforcement of intellectual property rights and unfair competition law, with particular experience in matters involving product imitations, counterfeits, and other infringing products.

Boyd, Felicia J.

Norton Rose Fulbright | Head of Brands

Felicia Boyd is a Chambers ranked litigator with extensive experience as a leader in complex IP disputes involving patents, copyrights, trademarks and trade dress—both in and out of court—spanning a diverse array of industries, including financial and investment services, medical devices (such as pacemakers, heart valves, defibrillators and synchronization devices), software, music, pharmaceuticals and manufactured goods. With more than three decades of practice, she has obtained several victories as a litigator, including preliminary injunction motions, summary judgment motions, favorable settlements and jury verdicts at trial.

Carpenter, Megan

UNH Franlin Pierce Law School | Law School Dean

Megan M. Carpenter is dean of the University of New Hampshire School of Law. Dean Carpenter is an internationally known expert in intellectual property, with particular interests in entrepreneurship, branding, and the arts. Prior to joining UNH Law, Dean Carpenter was founder and co-director of the Center for Law and Intellectual Property at Texas A&M University School of Law, where she also served as Professor of Law and Faculty Director of three intellectual property and entrepreneurship-related clinical programs.

Carrier, Michael

Rutgers Law School | Board of Governors Professor

Michael A. Carrier is a Board of Governors Professor at Rutgers Law School, where he specializes in antitrust and IP law. He is co-author of the leading IP/antitrust treatise, IP and Antitrust Law: An Analysis of Antitrust Principles Applied to Intellectual Property Law and the author of Innovation for the 21st Century: Harnessing the Power of Intellectual Property and Antitrust Law.

Che, Jennifer

Eagle IP | President and Managing Director

Jennifer Che is President and Managing Director of Eagle IP, a boutique patent firm headquartered in Greater China. A U.S. patent attorney with a deep understanding of cross-border U.S.-China patent matters, Jennifer combines nearly 15 years of in-house IP leadership experience in Boston, including roles at Vertex Pharmaceuticals and Flagship-founded Axcella, with more than eight years advising clients on China patent strategy from Asia.

Chernoff, Michael

Clerq | Director of IP Strategy

Michael Chernoff is Director of IP Strategy at Clerq (formerly NLPatent), the AI clerk for patent professionals, where he leads work on the company’s agentic patent research workflows and advises on product direction and market strategy.

Curtis, Anthony

Schwegman Lundberg & Woessner | Principal

Tony Curtis is a Partner at Schwegman Lundberg & Woessner. His practice includes patent procurement, portfolio management and strategic counseling in a wide range of electrical, software, and mechanical technologies. Tony previously worked as senior counsel in patent operations and portfolio management in the communications field at Verizon and Motorola Solutions. He has worked on diverse technology, including short and long-range telecommunication devices, semiconductor devices, materials, and processing, software (including AI), healthcare-related software and devices, big data analysis and usage, Internet-related software including advertising, and business methods.

Diego Castro, Luis

Eproint | Partner

Luis Diego Castro, attorney and Notary Public, is a Partner at Eproint, Chair of the IP Practice in Latin America Committee of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA), Vice President of the Board of Directors of the Costa Rican Biotech Cluster (CR Biomed) and a lecturer on intellectual property at Costa Rican and international universities.

Ergmann, Jessica

Sagacity Legal | Head of IP Transactions

For over 15 years, Jess Ergmann has driven high-value technologies from the lab to the global marketplace. As Head of IP Transactions at Sagacity Legal, a practice she leads alongside her longtime mentor and firm founder, Randi Karpinia, Jess develops practical transactional frameworks and commercial strategies that turn complex IP assets into scalable revenue streams.

Fach, Bradley

UNC Charlotte | Director of Patents, Licensing, and Legal Operations

Bradley (Brad) Fach is a Registered Patent Practitioner and Certified Licensing Professional (CLP) with over 25 years of experience in patent lifecycle management and IP strategy.

Fishel, Erica

GTC Law Group | Counsel

Erica A. Fishel, Ph.D., J.D. is Counsel at GTC Law Group, where she advises clients on patent prosecution, portfolio development, and intellectual property strategy, with a particular focus on life sciences and biotechnology. A registered patent attorney and molecular biologist, Erica works with universities, research institutions, emerging companies, and other innovators to develop patent strategies that align scientific innovation with long-term commercial objectives.

Fonteles Cabral, Filipe

Dannemann Siemsen | Partner

Filipe Fonteles Cabral is a Brazilian attorney and partner at Dannemann Siemsen, a leading intellectual property firm in Latin America. He holds a PhD in Law from the State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ) and is the author of the book Artificial Intelligence and Patents: Foundations, Inventorship and the Theory of Entrepreneurship (2025). With 30 years of practice, he focuses on intellectual property and technology laws.

Ghose, Mony

GE HealthCare | Chief IP Counsel

Mony Ghose is Chief IP Counsel at GE HealthCare, where she leads a team focused on creating value from innovation. She brings deep in-house experience in IP assessment, strategy development, and execution across telecommunications, aerospace, life sciences, and medical devices, with prior leadership roles at Danaher and Becton Dickinson and Company.

Gong, Steve

Google Global Patents | Senior Patent Counsel and Head of Data Science, AI and Operations

Steve Gong is Senior Patent Counsel and Head of Data Science, AI and Operations for Google Global Patents, where he leads the data science, technology, and operations organization supporting the company's patent function.

Goodrum, Garfield

Garfield Goodrum Design Law

Garfield Goodrum has over 20 years’ experience in IP, working with internationally known brands and designs. Garfield has cleared and prosecuted registrations for hundreds of trademarks and copyright-protected works, and litigated numerous design, copyright and trademark infringement and inter partes matters. In 2009, Garfield won a $774,000 jury verdict for willful design copyright infringement in U.S. federal court. Garfield is chair of the Industrial Design Committee of AIPLA – the American Intellectual Property Law Association, a member of INTA – the International Trademark Association and the Copyright Society of the U.S.

Hall, Dawn

FTI Consulting | Senior Managing Director

Dawn Hall is a Senior Managing Director in the Dispute Advisory Services (“DAS”) practice within the Forensic & Litigation Consulting segment at FTI Consulting and is the leader of the Intellectual Property Practice. Dawn Rice Hall is a recognized expert in complex financial, accounting and damages related matters and has been qualified as a damages expert in court.

Hartwig, Henning

Bardehle Pagenberg

Henning Hartwig’s practice involves prosecution and litigation of IP rights in the fields of trademark, design, copyright and unfair competition law. His practice focuses primarily on national and international industrial design law, particularly multinational design infringement proceedings as well as invalidity proceedings before the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) in Alicante and the Court of Justice of the European Union in Luxembourg.

Kepler, Tracy L

Pilot Legis RPG | Executive Director

Tracy L. Kepler is the Executive Director of Pilot Legis RPG and an SVP in the Professional Services Group with AON. In those roles, she leads the strategic, operational & external initiatives of a national consortium of mid-sized law firms committed to excellence in professional liability risk management.

Klapow, Mark

Crowell & Moring LLP | Partner

Mark Klapow is a Chambers-ranked trial lawyer specializing in high stakes technology disputes. He has tried and obtained significant victories in TROs, injunctions, dismissals, and verdicts in cases involving artificial intelligence, enterprise software, financial services, and emerging technologies. Over 25 years of experience representing startups and Fortune 500 companies in “bet the company” litigation matters, Mark has represented household names like Alcoa, AT&T, Caterpillar, Dow Chemical, Ericsson, ExxonMobil, Intel, Lenovo, Molson Coors, StoneX, and Western Union in courts throughout the country.

Kolakowski, John

Nokia Technology Standards | Head of IP Policy and Advocacy, Americas

John Kolakowski is Head of IP Policy and Advocacy, Americas for Nokia Technology Standards. He is an intellectual property counsel and business advisor with over 15 years of in-house worldwide telecommunications patent policy, licensing and litigation experience at Nokia and 10 years of prior private practice district court and ITC patent litigation experience at Morrison & Foerster LLP.

Manzer, Stefan

Ter Meer & Partner | Partner

Stefan Manzer, M.Sc. is a German and European Patent Attorney, authorized to represent clients before the Unified Patent Court (UPC), and a partner at TER MEER & Partner in Munich. His practice focuses on complex patent litigation and cross-border patent litigation strategy, particularly in the fields of telecommunications, electronics, consumer devices, and display technologies.

McCrackin, Ann

AI-Enabled Attorney, LLC | Founder

Ann McCrackin is a patent attorney, Adjunct Professor at the University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law, and founder of AI-Enabled Attorney LLC. She provides practical AI training and IP operations consulting for law firms and legal teams, with a focus on helping professionals use AI effectively in real patent and trademark workflows.

Myers, Monty

Eureka Software Solutions, Inc. | Founder & CEO

Monty Myers is one of the top software and technology experts in the country. As the founder/CEO of Eureka Software Solutions Inc. based in Austin, Texas, he and his team have delivered numerous successful software products and solutions into the commercial marketplace for a wide range of industries over the last 40+ years.

Nijm, Toni

Anaqua | Chief Product Officer

Toni Nijm is Chief Product Officer at Anaqua, which he joined in July 2025 after co-founding and serving as CEO of RightHub. He spent seven years at CPA Global, rising from Head of Service Platform Solutions through Chief Technology Officer and Chief Product and Strategy Officer to Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer, and earlier founded and led Ipendo AB, having begun his career as a systems designer at Ericsson and a patent attorney at Awapatent.

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.

Osha, John

Osha Bergman Watanabe & Burton LLP | Founding Partner

John leverages his more than 35 years of IP experience to provide effective strategic counseling to his clients and to mentor younger attorneys and agents in the firm. His practice covers the full scope of IP with special emphasis on management of complex international IP portfolios. John founded Osha Bergman Watanabe & Burton LLP in Houston, Texas in 1998, currently leads the firm’s electronics, optics, and physics group and chairs the firm’s international practice with offices in France, China, Japan and the U.A.E.

Parad, Dennis J.

DLA Piper | Senior Associate

Dennis J. Parad is a Senior Associate at DLA Piper and a registered patent attorney with more than two decades of intellectual property experience, including ten years as a Primary Patent Examiner at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Plassio, Patrick

O'Melvany | Counsel

With a practice including complex commercial disputes of all sorts and a focus on intellectual property and technology-related matters, Patrick Plassio adeptly translates and communicates complicated legal and factual issues to his clients, opposing parties, and courts. Offering key strategic insights and experience in trade secrets, and recognized by The Legal 500 US for his work on those matters, Patrick litigates in state and federal courts across the country, with extensive pretrial and trial experience and successes.

Polson, Margaret

Polson Intellectual Property Law | Founder and Principal Attorney

Margaret Polson is founder and principal attorney for Polson Intellectual Property Law. Overseeing the preparation and prosecution of utility and design patent applications, trademarks, and copyrights, she also assists clients with licensing and intellectual property strategy and management.

Pooley, James

James Pooley PLC | Founder

James (Jim) Pooley focuses on trade secret law and management, as a consultant and testifying expert. He has authored or co-authored several major IP works, including his treatise Trade Secrets (Law Journal Press), the Patent Case Management Judicial Guide and the Trade Secret Case Management Judicial Guide (both published by the Federal Judicial Center).

Ram, Jocelyn

The Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard | Senior IP Counsel

With over two decades of intellectual property experience, including in-house, private practice, and the USPTO, Jocelyn D. Ram brings a unique perspective as Senior IP Counsel at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. She currently manages a diverse portfolio of cutting-edge genomic technologies, focusing the convergence of AI and biotech.

Redden, Sydney

IP House | Associate Director for Global External Affairs

Sydney oversees IP House’s global public affairs and policy strategy including communications, marketing, and strategic partnerships. Before joining IP House, Sydney served as Director of IP Enforcement for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Global Innovation Policy Center, working closely with industry, government, and international stakeholders to advance enforcement priorities and public-facing campaigns. She began her career on Capitol Hill where she served on the U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations.

Ritscher, Michael

MLL Legal AG | Founding Member

Michael Ritscher studied at the University of Zurich and received his PhD, then passed the bar exam, completed an LL.M. at Georgetown University and, after research stays at Stanford University and the Max Planck Institute for Innovation and Competition in Munich, founded the intellectual property team of the Swiss law firm MLL Legal AG, which he has headed ever since.

Santone, Christopher

McAndrews | Design Patent Agent

Christopher Santone is a Design Patent Agent at McAndrews focusing on design patent matters. He has over a decade of experience as an industrial designer. As the first individual to pass the USPTO Design Patent Bar exam, Christopher’s unique background positions him as an exceptional resource for helping clients identify protectable assets and navigate the design patent process.

Santoro, Sofia

Società Italiana Brevetti S.p.A.

Sofia Santoro is a European and Italian Patent Attorney and a Unified Patent Court Representative, with experience in intellectual property since 2016. Her practice focuses primarily on patent matters in the chemical and pharmaceutical fields, including patent drafting and prosecution, opposition and appeal proceedings before the European Patent Office, and strategic patent advice.

Schick, Ian

Paximal | Co-Founder & CEO

Ian C. Schick is Co-Founder and CEO of Paximal, an agentic AI platform for patent drafting, and has worked on patent automation since 2017, when he co-founded Specifio — the first commercially available mass-content generator in legal tech — which was acquired in 2024.

Simon, Elizabeth

Akin | Associate General Counsel

Liz advises on a wide range of ethics and compliance-related matters to support the firm’s offices worldwide. Liz is involved in issues impacting firm risk management and client relations. These include resolving conflict-of-interest situations, advising on ethical questions and developing firm policies to support ethics and compliance best practices.

Southwick, Stephanie

Burford Capital | Director

Stephanie Southwick is a former first-chair commercial litigator who now partners with companies and law firms to unlock the strategic value of litigation through legal finance. Stephanie Southwick has over 15+ years in the courtroom- including serving as managing partner of her firm. She led high-stakes commercial and trade secret matters through mediation, trial and settlement. She saw firsthand how capital constraints shape legal strategy, influence risk tolerance and impact outcomes.

Tang, Timothy

Sterne Kessler | Director

Timothy L. Tang is a Director in Sterne Kessler’s Electronics Practice Group. His practice focuses on patent office litigation, patent prosecution, and portfolio development. Before the PTAB, Tim has represented both Petitioners and Patent Owners in numerous proceedings.

Todd, Hope

District of Columbia Bar | Associate Director Legal Ethics, Regulation Counsel

Hope C. Todd oversees the legal ethics program at the District of Columbia Bar. Since 2006, Ms. Todd has provided legal ethics guidance through the Bar’s Ethics Helpline on the interpretation and application of the D.C. Rules of Professional Conduct. She regularly teaches ethics CLEs and serves on panels for local and national audiences.

Tsujimoto, Nobuyuki

Japan Intellectual Property Association (JIPA) | Chair

Mr. Tsujimoto has been a member of the First International Affairs Committee of the Japan Intellectual Property Association (JIPA) since 2022, where he conducts research and studies on U.S. patent practices. He is a chair of the First International Affairs Committee. He is a registered Japanese Patent Attorney at Daikin Industries, LTD. He joined Daikin Industries, Ltd. in 2013. Since then, he has been consistently engaged in patent filing, prosecution, validity and freedom to operate, in chemical products.

Von Bomhard, Verena

Bomhard IP | Partner

Verena von Bomhard has been involved with EU trademarks from the very beginning, having founded her former firm’s office in Alicante in early 1996. She has extensive experience in all matters relating to prosecution and enforcement of EU trade marks and designs, has handled over 100 proceedings before the General Court and the Court of Justice of the European Union in Luxembourg, and advises on complex IP conflicts in the European Union and effective dispute resolution.

Wagner, Matthew

PDC Brands | General Counsel

Matt Wagner is General Counsel of PDC Brands, a global leader in wellness and personal care headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut. PDC’s portfolio includes category-leading brands such as Cantu®, Dr Teal’s®, Eylure®, and Body Fantasies®, sold at major retailers throughout the U.S., U.K., and in more than 80 markets worldwide.