By : Nahla Makled

Top officials from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Microsoft Corporation, Samsung Electronics, U.S. Department of Justice, Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Copyright Office will be among key speakers at the American Bar Association Intellectual Property Law Section’s 2022 ABA-IPL Section Annual Meeting April 5-7 at the Grand Hyatt Washington in Washington, DC.

The meeting will provide two days and nearly 23 programs featuring the world’s experts in intellectual property. The registration deadline for media is March 28.

• Drew Hirshfeld, Performing the Functions and Duties of the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO, will give the keynote address on updates from the Office. 
   
• William (Bill) F. Lee, a senior fellow at the Harvard Corporation and the Eli Goldston lecturer at Harvard Law School will receive the 2022 Mark T. Banner Award, which is presented annually by the Section of Intellectual Property Law. Lee is considered a pioneer in the IP Law profession.  The award, which recognizes exemplary individuals and groups who have contributed to intellectual property law and/or practice, will be presented during the luncheon.
   

There will be two plenaries:

• “Judicial Procedural Program,” with Judge Jonathan Hudis, administrative trademark judge, Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, USPTO, Alexandria, Virginia;  Judge Steve Ruwe, copyright royalty judge, Copyright Royalty Board, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.; and David Carson, copyright claims officer, Copyright Claims Board, US Copyright Office, Washington, D.C, ..  Wednesday, 1:30-3 p.m. EST
   
• “In-House Counsel Fireside Chat,” featuring Kim Jessum, chair of the Intellectual Property Law Section, associate general counsel, chief IP counsel U.S. and Secretary, Heraeus, Inc. and Global Legal Business Partner, Heraeus Medical Components LLC, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; in conversation with Burton Davis, vice president and deputy general counsel, Microsoft Corp., Seattle, Washington. Thursday, 9:45 a.m.-12:15 p.m. EST

Other program highlights include:

“Shark Tank Tales: Stories from Contestants Regarding their IP Portfolios” — David Postolski, Gearhart Law, Summit, New Jersey; Kaylin Marcotte, Jiggy Puzzles LCC, Brooklyn, New York (invited); and Dinesh Tadepalli, Incredible Eats Inc., Morrisville, North Carolina, will discuss their IP choices as Shark Tank contestants. They will share a behind-the-scenes look at the show experience. Wednesday, 4:30-5:30 p.m. EST

“Agency Approaches to the Antitrust-Intellectual Property Interface Under the Biden Administration” — Jennifer Dixton, assistant chief, Special Counsel for Policy & Intellectual Property, Antitrust Division  at the U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, D.C. and Anu Sawkar, special counsel for Intellectual Property at the Federal Trade Commission, Arlington, Virginia, will be among the panelists discussing the Biden administration’s perspective between intellectual property and antitrust in both the DOJ and FTC. Wednesday, 4:30-5:30 p.m. EST

“US Copyright Office Speaks: An Update on Recent Developments “ — An expert panel, all from the U.S. Copyright Office, Washington, D.C., will discuss recent developments in U.S. copyright law, policy operations and modernization. They are: Robert Kasunic, associate register of Copyrights and director of Registration Policy and Practice; Shira Perlmutter, register of Copyrights and director; Maria Strong, associate register of Copyrights and director of Policy and International Affairs; George Thuronyi, interim head of the Office of Public Information and Education; and Suzanne Wilson, general counsel and associate register of Copyrights. Thursday, 8:30-9:30 a.m. EST

“Open NFT Marketplaces aka the “Wild West” of Intellectual Property” – Legal issues associated with pervasive IP infringement in open NFT marketplaces will be explored. Expert panelists will explain mechanisms by which IP holders may protect their rights: Carlos Garcia- Aguilar, Far-Fetched Labs, Inc., El Paso, Texas; Ash Kernen, Kernen Law, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Eliana Torres, Web3 Lawyers, Washington, D.C. Thursday, 2:15 – 3:15 p.m. EST.

“Navigating Trade Secret Systems in a Rapidly Changing Innovation Environment” — The business aspects of trade secrets and recent developments governing the protection of trade secrets will be discussed by this panel of experts: Mareesa Frederick, Finnegan, Washington, D.C.; Lauren Peterson, Adducci Mastriani & Schaumberg, Washington, D.C.; Pallavi Seth, The Brattle Group, Washington, D.C.; and Bridget Smith, Relativity Space, Los Angeles, California. Thursday, 4:45-5:45 p.m. EST