OCIPLA

OCIPLA 2023 Holiday Celebration
2023-12-12 18:00 - 21:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Courtyard at The Boardwalk, 18565 Jamboree Rd, Irvine, CA, 92612
You’re Invited!
We are pleased to announce the OCIPLA 2023 Holiday Celebration on December 12, 2023.
Join us at Courtyard at The Boardwalk for an evening of holiday cheer. Drinks and hors d’oeuvres will be served.
The event will be held outdoors.
Members are free and must register for the event.
Non-member and guest tickets are $25.
We look forward to seeing everyone there,
OCIPLA Board of Directors

Event Details
DATE: Tuesday, December 12, 2023
TIME: 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
LOCATION: The Boardwalk – Courtyard: 18575 Jamboree Rd., Irvine, CA 92612

Registration:
Member: Free
Non-Member: $25.00
Guest: $25.00

VIRTUAL PROGRAM – The Unified Patent Court: Initial Cases
2023-11-16 12:00 - 13:00
Topic: Unified Patent Court: Initial Cases
The Unified Patent Court (UPC) entered into force on June 1, 2023 in the European Union. Hundreds of cases have been filed there, already. In a few cases, the Court has issued preliminary injunction decisions that have been favorable for patent owners. This presentation will review the initial cases, including trends in the divisions being used, the parties accessing the court, and the substantive decisions made so far.
The presentation will also consider the structure and incentives of the court in comparison to U.S. tribunals and will consider more generally how the launch of the UPC aims to transform the global patent litigation market. The presentation will also consider the expected impact of the Court on due diligence exercises in transactions and valuations.
Date: Thursday, November 16, 2023
Time: 12:00pm – 1:00pm
Location: Virtual Event (zoom link to be provided)
Registration:
Member: $20.00
Non-Member: $20.00
Student Member: $20.00

Speaker:
Charles (Chuck) Larsen, Partner, McDermott Will & Emery (Boston, London)
As a US lawyer and English solicitor, Charles (Chuck) Larsen provides clients sophisticated multi jurisdictional counsel in intellectual property portfolio strategy, transactions and disputes, with a particular emphasis in bioengineering and the medical technology space. He is licensed to practice before the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), the European Patent Office (EPO), and the courts of England and Wales.
He actively counsels on transatlantic disputes, including U.S. District Court cases, Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) proceedings, Reexaminations, EPO Oppositions, and litigation. His team is one of the first international practices to bring an action in Europe’s Unified Patent Court.
Chuck also has extensive experience in transactional IP matters, including transaction structuring and portfolio due diligence for investments and acquisitions, and negotiating collaboration license agreements, joint ventures and other strategic commercial contracts involving key IP assets.
Chuck has advised on a wide range of technology in engineering and life sciences, including bioengineering and medical technology, pharmaceuticals, microfluidics, drug delivery, machine learning, signal processing, combustion and energy. In the medical technology sector, his experience has involved a wide range of technologies, including intravascular devices, respiratory systems, orthopedic implants, cellular therapy, tissue engineering, neuromonitoring, spine technology, electrical stimulation, healthcare informatics, DNA sequencing, software driven devices, biological manufacturing and diagnostics.

OCIPLA October 2023 Luncheon
2023-10-26 12:00 - 13:00 | Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main Street, Irvine, CA, United States
Topic: Monitoring and Enforcing Your Brand Against Online Counterfeiters
Aaron and Jonathan will discuss evolving trends in online counterfeiting, including new techniques infringers use to evade detection, and will offer insights into building an effective enforcement program.
Date: Thursday, October 26, 2023
Time: 12:00pm – 1:00pm
Location: Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main St, Irvine, CA 92614
Registration:
Member: $55.00
Non-Member: $80.00
Student Member: $20.00

Our Speakers
Aaron Fennimore has been advising clients for more than 15 years on the protection, management and enforcement of trademarks, copyrights and domain names, as well as in the areas of marketing and advertising, rights of publicity and privacy. He currently serves as Director and Senior Legal Counsel for Western Digital Corp., a leading provider of data storage products, where he focuses on a range of brand protection issues, including trademark infringement, anti-counterfeiting and fraud.
Jonathan Tudryn is a Brand Protection Program Manager at Western Digital, specializing in online enforcement and overseeing day-to-day enforcement efforts in many countries across the globe. With over a decade of experience dealing with infringers in the online space, he’s seen it all! Applying his background in mathematics and computer science, Jonathan loves studying trends and finding new ways that infringers try to take advantage of consumers. Outside of the office, you’ll find him tinkering with computers or sharpening his cooking skills in the kitchen.

OCIPLA September 2023 Luncheon
2023-09-21 12:00 - 13:00 | Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main Street, Irvine, CA, United States
Guest Speakers: Raquel Dachner and David Flyer, Flyer & Flyer, PLC
Topic: Trying an Unregistered Trade Dress Case
Date: Thursday, September 21, 2023
Time: 12:00pm – 1:00pm
Location: Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main St, Irvine, CA 92614
Registration:
Member: $55.00
Non-Member: $80.00
Student Member: $20.00

Our Speakers
Raquel Flyer Dachner
Raquel received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California, then went to law school at UC Davis School of Law graduating in 2011. She is a partner at Flyer and Flyer, PLC, and has been lead trial counsel on eight jury trials involving trade dress infringement, breach of contract, and other civil matters. Recently, on July 28, 2023, the jury returned a verdict in favor of her client, a physician’s group, against a fortune 150 company-machine manufacturer. The manufacturer sold the physician’s group a blood and tissue assay machine which failed to operate as warranted, where the manufacturer claimed that the physician’s laboratory technicians failed to maintain and operate the machine as described in the owner’s manual. Both sides retained experts, and a key piece of evidence according to the jury, was an edited video presentation depicting both maintenance and operations. The matter was heard by the Honorable Sherilyn Peace Green, US District Court for Central District of California.
David Flyer
David Flyer is 1974 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy, following which he served for over five years on active duty. He obtained the rank of Captain. After military service, Mr. Flyer received a M.S. in Systems Engineering from the University of Southern California and matriculated from Southwestern University SOL in 1981, and was admitted to the bar thereafter. He is a Registered Patent Attorney and a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates. One successful method we use to handle good claims with inventors and smaller businesses involves a modified contingency arrangement, where the client pays costs and a modest retainer. In this manner, we make the legal system more accessible.

OCIPLA May 2023 Luncheon
2023-05-23 12:00 - 13:00 | Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main Street, Irvine, CA, United States
**NOTE THIS MONTH’S LUNCHEON OCCURS ON A TUESDAY**
In Partnership with the OCBA IP and Technology Section.
Special Guest Speaker: World Intellectual Property Organization Director General, Daren Tang
Date: Tuesday, May 23, 2023
Time: 12:00pm – 1:00pm
Location: Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main St, Irvine, CA 92614
Registration:
Member: $55.00
Non-Member: $80.00

Our Speaker
Daren Tang, a national of Singapore, began his six-year mandate as Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) on October 1, 2020. Prior to his appointment as WIPO Director General, he served as Chief Executive of the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS), driving the strategic transformation of IPOS in support of Singapore’s innovation-based economy.
Between 1997 and 2012, before joining IPOS, Daren Tang held different legal positions within the Attorney-General’s Chambers and the Ministry of Trade and Industry of Singapore. In 2016, he received the Public Administration Medal from the Prime Minister’s Office Singapore for outstanding efficiency and competence in the service of his country.
Daren Tang is a graduate of the National University of Singapore (Bachelor of Law, Honors) and the Georgetown University Law Center (Master of Laws, Distinction). He also attended the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School. He is fluent in English and Chinese.

Cannabis IP Law Conference: California Lawyers Association
2023-04-19 08:45 - 19:15
The Intellectual Property Law Section of the California Lawyers Association is presenting the full day in person Cannabis IP Law Conference on April 19, 2023, at the Le Méridien Delfina Santa Monica.
More than half of the states (plus Washington, D.C.) in the United States – including California – have either significantly de-criminalized the cultivation, possession, and sale of cannabis for medical purposes or have legalized it for use by adults over the age of 21 (a/k/a “recreational” use). This has resulted in a multi-billion dollar industry. Intellectual Property law has proven to be one of the most critical areas of the law as investors and entrepreneurs enter the cannabis space and try to determine how to protect and leverage their investments. In addition to outstanding educational programming relating to cannabis intellectual property litigation, licensing, parodies, trademark and patent filing strategies, and ethical considerations when representing cannabis companies, the conference will offer several networking opportunities.
Information and registration available here: https://calawyers.org/event/ip-cannabis-law-conference/.

OCIPLA April 2023 Luncheon
2023-04-13 12:00 - 13:00 | Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main Street, Irvine, CA, United States
Speaker:
Mark A. Lemley, William H. Neukom Professor of Law at Stanford Law School and of counsel at Lex Lumina PLLC.
Topic: Patent Year in Review
Date: Thursday, April 13, 2023
Time: 12:00pm – 1:00pm
Location: Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main St, Irvine, CA 92614
Registration:
Member: $55.00
Non-Member: $80.00

Speaker
Mark A. Lemley
Mark Lemley is the William H. Neukom Professor of Law at Stanford Law School and the Director of the Stanford Program in Law, Science and Technology. He is also a Senior Fellow at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research and is affiliated faculty in the Symbolic Systems program. He teaches intellectual property, patent law, trademark law, antitrust, the law of robotics and AI, video game law, and remedies. He is the author of 10 books and 201 articles, including the two-volume treatise IP and Antitrust. His works have been cited more than 300 times by courts, including 17 times by the United States Supreme Court, and more than 40,000 times in books and academic articles, making him the most-cited scholar in IP law and one of the ten most cited legal scholars of all time. He has published 9 of the 100 most-cited law review articles of the last twenty years, more than any other scholar, and is the third most cited legal scholar from 2016-2020. His articles have appeared in 24 of the top 25 law reviews and in top journals in other fields, including Nature Biotechnology, the American Economic Review, the Review of Economics and Statistics, and the Harvard Business Review, and in multiple peer-reviewed and specialty journals. They have been reprinted throughout the world, and translated into Chinese, Danish, Japanese, Korean, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish. He has taught IP law to federal and state judges at numerous Federal Judicial Center and ABA programs, has testified eight times before Congress, and has filed more than 70 amicus briefs in the U.S. Supreme Court and other courts.
Mark is of counsel at the law firm Lex Lumina. He litigates and counsels clients in all areas of intellectual property, antitrust, and internet law. He has argued 30 federal appellate cases and numerous district court cases as well as before the California Supreme Court. He has participated in more than three dozen cases in the United States Supreme Court as counsel or amici. His client base is diverse and has included Genentech, Dykes on Bikes, video game companies, artists, computer scientists, and nearly every significant Internet company.
Mark cofounded Lex Machina, Inc., a startup company that provides litigation data and analytics to law firms, companies, courts, and policymakers. Lex Machina was acquired by Lexis in December 2015.
Mark has been named California Lawyer’s Attorney of the Year twice. He received the California State Bar’s inaugural IP Vanguard Award. He won the 2018 World Technology Award for Law. In 2017 he received the P.J. Federico Award from the Patent and Trademark Office Society. Back when he was young, he was named a Young Global Leader by the Davos World Economic Forum and Berkeley Law School’s Young Alumnus of the Year. He has been recognized as one of the top 50 litigators in the country under 45 and one of the 25 most influential people in IP by American Lawyer, one of the 100 most influential lawyers in the nation by the National Law Journal, and one of the 10 most admired attorneys in IP by IP360. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Law Institute, and the IP Hall of Fame.
Mark clerked for Judge Dorothy Nelson on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and has practiced law with Brown & Bain, Fish & Richardson, Keker & Van Nest, and Durie Tangri. He has previously taught at Berkeley Law School and the University of Texas School of Law. In his spare time, Mark enjoys cooking, travel, yoga, and video games (at this writing, Hogwarts Legacy).

OCIPLA March 2023 Luncheon
2023-03-16 12:00 - 13:00 | Sol Irvine, 1910 Main Street, Irvine, CA, 92614, United States
NEW LOCATION FOR THIS MONTH’S LUNCHEON: SOL IRVINE
Speakers:
Harold Weitzberg, Weitzberg Consulting
Julie Leffler, Big Hype Marketing & PR
Topic: Beyond Registration: Growing and Monetizing Intellectual Property Assets
Date/Time: Thursday, March 16, 2023
12:00pm – 1:00pm
Location: Sol Irvine, 1910 Main St, Irvine, CA 92614
Registration
Member: 55.00
Non-Member: 80.00

Speakers
Harold Weitzberg
Harold Weitzberg is a branding, marketing, licensing, and business development strategist with over 30 years experience in creating and launching businesses, Brands, products and services. Currently working with Hollywood Celebrity Candace Cameron Bure, Food Network star Aarti Sequiera, and spokesperson and actor Dave Coulier, he has a national clientele with a number of well-known individuals as well as business owners, inventors and executives. Harold has worked with and built several high visibility products and brands and verticals in media and consumer businesses including the Olsen Twins, VeggieTales, Goosebumps, The Jane Fonda Workout, Al Kluis Grain Marketing, Sorora Furniture, Lancer Skincare, QVC and more.
Julie Leffler
As the visionary leader and creative director, Julie Leffler launched Big Hype Marketing & PR in 2015 and has built a powerhouse agency with a clientele that includes both individuals and businesses across a variety of industries. With over 20 years of experience in marketing, brand development, and public relations, Julie is a top-notch strategist and able to develop and execute innovative campaigns that make waves and build hype!
Julie provides steadfast dedication to clients and consistently creates strategic campaigns that make a big impact. Noted for her creative and discerning eye, on-point content writing skills, and an impressive ability to multi-task, Julie is involved in every project that comes through the doors of Big Hype.
Prior to launching Big Hype Marketing & PR, Julie worked at several public relations firms in Hollywood representing celebrities, home video releases, movie premieres, and theatrical releases. She later managed both marketing and public relations at action sports company Hurley. In 2006, Julie launched her own public relations agency, Prestige Public Relations, representing fashion and lifestyle brands. She later launched Big Hype Marketing & PR with the addition of comprehensive digital marketing services including branding, copy writing, SEO, SEM, website design, social media marketing, graphic design, email marketing, and more.

OCIPLA February 2023 Luncheon
2023-02-23 12:00 - 13:00 | Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main Street, Irvine, CA, United States
Speakers:
Maria Anderson, Partner, Seattle office of Knobbe Martens
Marissa Rosenbaum, Associate, Orange County office of Knobbe Martens
Jessica Sganga, Partner, Los Angeles office of Knobbe Martens

Topic: Protecting Your Healthcare Brand: Trademark Considerations and Challenges Unique to the Healthcare Industry
Date/Time: Thursday, February 23, 2023
12:00pm – 1:00pm
Location: Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main St, Irvine, CA 92614
Registration
Member:
Non-Member:

Speakers
Maria Anderson is a partner in the Seattle, WA office of Knobbe Martens. She has extensive experience in comprehensive, strategic client counseling in all aspects of intellectual property and has been very active in the procurement of patent assets in the computer science and ecommerce fields since 1993. Ms. Anderson has extensive experience in developing patent and trademark portfolios and developing patent and trademark assets for a diverse group of clients, i.e., from startups to Fortune 100 companies. She also provides patent and trademark search analysis and advice for a wide variety of products and services, including medical devices, food and beverage products and cloud computing services. She also counsels clients on patentability and infringement matters and develops comprehensive intellectual property programs for pre-litigation, licensing and enforcement purposes.
Marissa Rosenbaum is an associate in the Orange County office of Knobbe Martens. She focuses on all areas related to domestic and international trademark and copyright law, including, counseling, prosecution, maintenance, audits, policing, and enforcement. She also advises clients on the development and management of global trademark portfolios, counterfeit enforcement, intellectual property transactions, and unfair competition. Marissa represents clients in several industries, including food and beverage, software, e-commerce, technology and electronic devices, retail, media and entertainment, medical devices, personal care products, and jewelry.
Jessica Sganga is a partner in the Los Angeles office of Knobbe Martens. She focuses on domestic and international trademark, unfair competition, copyright, data privacy, advertising, and internet law. Her practice includes domestic and foreign trademark selection and searching, trademark procurement and prosecution, inter partes proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, intellectual property licensing, domain name disputes, counterfeit goods and customs, rights of publicity, and trademark, trade dress, unfair competition, and copyright enforcement and litigation. She also advises clients on an array of electronic commerce matters, including data privacy and data security compliance and procedure, data breach response, online privacy, mobile privacy, advertising and promotions, and social media. She represents clients across a broad range of industries, including well-known companies in the food and beverage, cosmetic, fashion, e-commerce, and entertainment space.

OCIPLA Welcome Back Mixer and IP Ethics CLE
2023-01-25 17:30 - 20:00 | Courtyard at The Boardwalk, 18565 Jamboree Rd, Irvine, CA, 92612
Speaker:
Emil J. Ali, Partner, McCabe & Ali, LLP

Topic: Ethics Issues for IP Counsel Working Through Foreign Associates and Intermediaries
Date/Time: Wednesday, January 25, 2023
5:30pm – 8:00pm
Registration: 5:30pm
CLE Session: 6:00pm – 7:00pm
Networking reception to follow
Location: The Boardwalk, 18565 Jamboree Rd, Irvine, CA 92612
Registration
Member: $30.00
Non-Member: $45.00
This is a good opportunity for attendees to obtain hard-to-earn ethics CLE credits before the 2023 submission deadline.

Speaker
Emil J. Ali is a partner at McCabe & Ali, LLP where he focuses his practice on helping lawyers understand their obligations under state and federal law. As a registered patent attorney, a significant focus of his practice involves advising lawyers and law firms on all aspects of the intersection of IP and ethics matters. Emil’s work includes counseling clients on lateral transitions, malpractice avoidance, expert opinion and testimony, and respondent’s defense work before various bars and courts. You can view his musings on IP ethics issues at www.ipethicslaw.com.

OCIPLA November 2022 Luncheon
2022-11-18 12:00 - 13:00 | Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main Street, Irvine, CA, United States
Speakers:
Jason Weintraub, Chief Legal Officer, Jacuzzi Group Worldwide
Neha Jaiswal, Director, International at Domino’s Pizza
Topic: Protecting Popular Brands
Date/Time: Friday, November 18, 2022
Registration/Lunch/Networking Start: 11:30am
Panel Discussion: 12:00pm – 1:00pm
Location: Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main Street, Irvine, CA 92614
Registration
Member: $55.00
Non-Member: $80.00

Speakers
Jason Weintraub is Chief Legal Officer & General Counsel of Jacuzzi Group, a global, private equity-owned consumer products manufacturer with over 5,000 employees. Mr. Weintraub manages Jacuzzi Group’s legal, compliance, risk management and real estate functions. His responsibilities include protecting the company’s iconic Jacuzzi® trademark and other intellectual property, leading M&A activity and managing the company’s global real estate portfolio, litigation matters, major transactions, and insurance procurement and claims. Mr. Weintraub also leads Jacuzzi Group’s regulatory and corporate compliance program and supports the company’s ESG efforts.
Prior to joining Jacuzzi Group, Mr. Weintraub served as Chief Legal Officer of El Pollo Loco, Inc., a publicly traded restaurant company with nearly 500 locations and over 5,000 employees. Mr. Weintraub led El Pollo Loco’s Legal, Compliance and Risk Management Functions. He maintained responsibility for litigation matters, as well as transactions, intellectual property procurement and licensing, franchising matters, enterprise risk management, regulatory and corporate compliance, employment counseling, marketing and advertising support, and insurance procurement and loss prevention.
Before joining El Pollo Loco, Mr. Weintraub served as Vice President, General Counsel & Secretary for BSH Home Appliances Corporation in Irvine, Calif. There, he led the Legal, Compliance and Risk Management functions. His role included documenting transactions facilitating billions in revenue, leading a deal team for multiple strategic acquisitions, and supporting partnerships enabling accelerated growth for the company. Mr. Weintraub has also held senior legal department roles at Taco Bell Corp. and Broadcom Corporation.
Mr. Weintraub is a frequently sought-after lecturer at continuing education seminars, speaking on such issues as international business expansion, risk management, unfair competition law, and complex civil litigation. In 2019, Mr. Weintraub was honored by the National Association of Women Lawyers with the national Challenge Award, provided to the corporate legal department that best promotes the hiring and advancement of women in the legal profession. In 2012, he was honored as the “Rising Star” at the Orange County Business Journal’s General Counsel of the Year Awards. Mr. Weintraub received his Juris Doctor degree from Berkeley Law (University of California) and his undergraduate degree in political science from Stanford University.

LAIPLA Courthouse Program
2022-10-26 11:45 - 13:30 | Ronald Reagan Courthouse, 411 W. 4th Street, Santa Ana, CA, 92701, United States
LAIPLA is proud to present its 2022 LAIPLA Courthouse Program
Join us at the Ronald Reagan Courthouse in Santa Ana for this year’s program, which will offer practical advice concerning courtroom presentation skills and strategies in IP cases, including motion practice and trial presentations.
**Free parking is available in City of Santa Ana parking structures, including at 310 N Birch Street directly across from the Courthouse, but please allow additional time for parking given significant OC streetcar construction in front of the Courthouse.**
Featuring:

Judge David Carter
Judge James Selna
Magistrate Judge Karen Scott

SCHEDULE
11:45 AM: Registration outside Courtroom 9C12:00 PM: Program inside Courtroom 9C1:00 PM: Post-program networking, appetizers, and soft drinks at neighboring location, courtesy of The Sullivan Group.
**Los Angeles Intellectual Property Law Association (provider # 2083) certifies that this activity has been approved for MCLE credit by the State Bar of California in the amount of 1.0 hours.
PRICING
Includes appetizers and soft drinks courtesy of The Sullivan Group:

LAIPLA/OCIPLA Members: $10

LAIPLA Law Student Members, other law students, and court personnel: Complimentary

Non-Members: $20

CANCELLATION POLICY

In order to receive a refund, notice of cancellation must be received by Friday, October 21st to office@laipla.net. Refunds will not be issued for cancellations received after Friday, October 21st.
Register for Courthouse Program

OCIPLA October 2022 Luncheon
2022-10-20 12:00 - 13:00 | Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main Street, Irvine, CA, United States
Speakers:
Christina Zabat-Fran, General Counsel/CLO at ST. JOHN
John Conniff, Chief Legal Officer at Amada North America, Inc.
Mark Blake, Senior Director – Litigation, Intellectual Property and Strategy at Edwards Lifesciences
Michael Kline, Senior Corporate Counsel, Director of IP at Cleveland Golf
Topic: IP Challenges of In-House Counsel
Date/Time: Thursday, October 20, 2022
Registration/Lunch/Networking Start: 11:30am
Panel Discussion 12:00pm – 1:00pm
Location: Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main Street, Irvine, CA 92614
Registration
Member – $55.00
Non-Member – $80.00

Sponsors

OCIPLA September 2022 Luncheon
2022-09-15 12:00 - 13:00 | Zoom
Speaker: Dahlia George, USPTO Office of Enrollment and Discipline
Topic: An Overview of the USPTO Patent Pro Bono Program
Date/Time: Thursday, September 15 at 12:00 PT
Location: Zoom

SPEAKER
Dahlia George
Dahlia George first joined the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in January 2005 as a Trademark Examining Attorney. In January 2008, she joined the USPTO Office of General Law where she investigated and prosecuted EEOC complaints, grievances, and Merit Systems Protection Bureau appeals. She also responded to subpoenas for Government witnesses and documents, investigated Federal Tort Claims Act claims and IG inquiries, and handled Reasonable Accommodation requests for legal sufficiency. In addition, she was the USPTO FOIA Officer. Since January 2011 to the present, she joined the USPTO Office of Enrollment and Discipline where she investigates grievances and complaints alleging misconduct by patent and trademark practitioners; conducts moral character and “fitness to practice” applications for individuals seeking registration before the USPTO; and heads the Diversion Pilot Program for impaired practitioners.
Before working at the USPTO, Ms. George was an Assistant Attorney General for the N.H. Office of Attorney General where she investigated and prosecuted professional misconduct cases against licensed professionals such as physicians, psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers, before their respective licensing boards.
Prior to her stint as a N.H. Assistant Attorney General, she served a tour of duty as a Judge Advocate General (JAG) in the United States Air Force where she served as a prosecutor for the United States in courts-martial and administrative discharge proceedings; handled procurement and claims matters; and advised base and wing commanders on the legality of base activities such as bingo night and mess activities. Later she was promoted to the position of Area Defense Counsel for three bases covering 15,000 military and civilian personnel, where she represented military personnel in courts-martial (felony trials) and discharge proceedings.
She is licensed to practice law in the District of Columbia.

OCIPLA May 2022 Luncheon
2022-05-26 12:00 - 13:00 | Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main Street, Irvine, CA, United States
Speakers: Honorable John W. Holcomb and Alan G. Laquer
Topic: Anatomy of a Copyright Case
Date/Time: Thursday, May 26 at 12:00 PT
Location: In-person at Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main St, Irvine, CA 92614

SPEAKERS
Honorable John W. Holcomb
Judge Holcomb earned his B.S. in civil engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1984. For the next five years, he served as a commissioned officer in the United States Navy, including assignments aboard the battleship U.S.S. New Jersey (BB-62) and with the Joint Staff at the Pentagon. In 1993, Judge Holcomb received his M.B.A. from Harvard Business School and his J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School. He then served as a law clerk for Judge Ronald Barliant of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois. Thereafter, Judge Holcomb was an associate with Irell & Manella LLP. In 1997, he joined the intellectual property law firm of Knobbe, Martens, Olson & Bear, LLP, and he was elevated to partner in 2002. Judge Holcomb retired from Knobbe Martens in 2018, and he briefly practiced as a bankruptcy and litigation sole-practitioner before joining the firm Greenberg Gross LLP as a partner in 2019. In September 2020, the U.S. Senate confirmed Judge Holcomb’s appointment as a District Judge.

Alan G. Laquer
Alan Laquer is a litigation partner in the Knobbe Martens Orange County office. He has litigated dozens of patent, trade secret, trademark, technology contract, and copyright cases. Relying on his industry experience as a programmer, Alan frequently handles cases with software/IT claims. Alan represents clients ranging from startups to industry leaders, and as defendants as well as plaintiffs. His victories include resolving several cases through motions to dismiss, summary judgment, trial, and appeal. Alan focuses on litigating efficiently and ensuring that case strategy matches his clients’ business goals. He has served as second-chair trial counsel in district court, the International Trade Commission, and arbitration. He is a registered Patent Attorney and has litigated several inter partes reviews for petitioners as well as patent owners. Alan has also worked as a criminal trial prosecutor in the Orange County District Attorney’s Office through its Trial Attorney Partnership program.

OCIPLA April 2022 Virtual Luncheon
2022-04-28 12:00 - 13:00 | Zoom
Speaker: Charlene Minx: Principal and Founder of Minx Law, PC
Topic: “Trademark Modernization Act – Practice Tips for IP Attorneys”
Date/Time: Thursday, April 28 at 12:00 PT
Location: Zoom

SPEAKER
Charlene Minx is an intellectual property attorney and trusted advisor to brand owners. For more than 16 years, Charlene has counseled clients in all aspects of brand management and enforcement, including the selection, commercialization, and protection of global IP portfolios. Charlene’s clients include both iconic brands and emerging companies in digital media and entertainment, software and Web3, apparel and footwear, and consumer and personal goods.
Charlene’s work includes guiding clients through complex IP transactions, including brand licensing programs, and lending IP specialist support to M&A transactions. On the enforcement side, Charlene represents clients before the federal courts and the USPTO’s Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. She also has extensive experience in managing cross-border IP disputes.
Prior to forming her own boutique firm in 2016, Charlene practiced in the intellectual property groups at Greenberg Traurig LLP and Steptoe & Johnson LLP. She is a graduate of USC Law School and UC Berkeley.

OCIPLA March 2022 Virtual Discussion
2022-03-17 12:00 - 13:00 | Zoom
Speaker: Ahsan Shaikh, partner and head of McDermott Will & Emery’s patent prosecution practice.
Topic: Calling All Innovators: Driving Inclusive Team Idea Generation
Join OCIPLA for a discussion with Ahsan Shaikh, partner and head of McDermott Will & Emery’s patent prosecution practice, on using hybrid brainstorming to create a more inclusive patenting program that measurably increases inventor diversity.
Date/Time: Thursday, March 17 at 12:00 PT
Location: Zoom

OCIPLA March 2022 Virtual Luncheon
2022-03-03 12:00 - 13:00
Speaker: John Sganga of Knobbe Martens
Topic: “Who’s on First, District Courts or the PTAB? The PTAB’s use of the Fintiv rule to deny IPR petitions when there is parallel litigation”
Date/Time: Thursday, March 3 at 12:00 PT
Location: Zoom

OCIPLA January 2022 Virtual Luncheon
2022-01-20 12:00 - 13:00
OCIPLA’s January 2022 Luncheon
Date: Thursday, January 20, 2022
Time: 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Location: Online
Topic: Patent Year in Review

SPEAKER
Mark A. Lemley, William H. Neukom Professor, Stanford Law School
Director, Stanford Program in Law, Science, and Technology

OCIPLA Holiday Celebration 2021
2021-12-09 18:00 - 21:00 | Courtyard at The Boardwalk, 18565 Jamboree Rd, Irvine, CA, 92612
OCIPLA Holiday Celebration
Date: Thursday, December 9, 2021
Time: 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Location: Courtyard at The Boardwalk

OCIPLA November 2021 Luncheon
2021-11-18 12:00 - 13:00
OCIPLA’s November 2021 Luncheon
Date: Thursday, November 18, 2021
Time: 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Location: Online
Topic: In-House Panel

SPEAKERS
Michael Kline, Cleveland Golf
Libby Hope, Intel
Randy Chang, Acushnet Company
Asal Saffari, Western Digital
David Chan, Western Digital (Moderator)

OCIPLA's September 2021 Luncheon
2021-09-17 12:00 - 13:00 | Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine, 2607 Main Street, Irvine, CA, United States
OCIPLA’s September 2021 Luncheon (both in-person and virtual on Zoom)
Date: Friday, September 17, 2021
Time: 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Location: Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine & Cocktails (2607 Main St, Irvine, CA 92614)
Topic: Hottest issues in IP: Vaccine IP waiver, Section 101, PTAB institution denials to Trademark Modernization Act, small claims patent court and diversity of innovation

SPEAKERS
Andrei Iancu
Andrei Iancu focuses on intellectual property litigation and counseling. He previously served as the undersecretary of commerce for intellectual property and director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), a position to which he was confirmed unanimously by the Senate.
As head of the USPTO, Andrei oversaw one of the largest IP offices in the world, an agency with approximately 13,000 employees and an annual budget of more than $3.5 billion. He also served as the administration’s principal advisor on domestic and international IP issues. Among Andrei’s initiatives as director was the creation of the National Council for Expanding American Innovation, a group of industry, academia and government leaders tasked with helping the USPTO develop a comprehensive national strategy to broaden participation in the innovation ecosystem demographically, geographically and economically.
Prior to his government service, Andrei spent two decades at Irell and served as the firm’s managing partner from 2012 to 2018, the maximum allowable tenure. In his time at the firm, he represented clients in a variety of high-profile matters in district courts, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the U.S. International Trade Commission and the USPTO. In addition to litigation, Andrei was involved in all other aspects of IP practice, including prosecution, due diligence and licensing. He represented plaintiffs and defendants across the technical and scientific spectra, including those associated with medical devices, genetic testing, therapeutics, the internet, telephony, TV broadcasting, video game systems and computer peripherals.
Throughout his career, Andrei has been widely recognized for his work, earning accolades from publications including Chambers USA, Intellectual Asset Management, Managing IP, Daily Journal, California Lawyer, Los Angeles Business Journal, Legal 500, and many others. Most recently, he was inducted into the IAM Hall of Fame by Intellectual Asset Management and received the “Excellence Award” from American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA). In 2019, Andrei received the “IP Champion Award” from the Intellectual Property Owners Education Foundation for “his extraordinary leadership in advocating for the value of intellectual property to stimulate the progress of innovation.” Andrei also received the 2020 IEEE-USA “Award for Distinguished Public Service” for “his achievement of restoring balance and confidence in the U.S. patent system.”
In 2021, Andrei co-founded the Renewing American Innovation Project at the bipartisan Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). He previously taught patent law at UCLA School of Law, and he is a sought-after speaker and writer on issues related to IP and innovation.
Prior to law school, Andrei was an engineer at Hughes Aircraft Co. where he received several honors including the “Malcolm R. Currie Innovation Award.” He is still licensed as a Professional Engineer in California.

OCIPLA May 2021 Luncheon
2021-05-20 12:00 - 13:00
OCIPLA’s April 2021 Virtual Luncheon
Date: Thursday, May 20, 2021
Time: 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Location: Online only
Topic: Recent Developments in Copyright Law: Professor Tyler Ochoa of the High Tech Law Institute, Santa Clara University School of Law, will discuss the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement (CASE) Act, new Copyright Office regulations, and recent court decisions in copyright, including the U.S. Supreme Court’s opinion in Google v. Oracle and case law concerning fair use and secondary liability.

SPEAKERS
Tyler Ochoa
Tyler T. Ochoa is a Professor with the High Tech Law Institute at Santa Clara University School of Law in California, where he teaches courses in trademark law, copyright law, and rights of publicity. Professor Ochoa is the author of annual updates to the treatise, The Law of Copyright (West 2020 edition); a co-author of Copyright Law (Carolina Academic Press 11th ed. 2020), a widely-used casebook; a co-author of Understanding Intellectual Property Law (Carolina Academic Press 2019), a student hornbook; and a co-author of Celebrity Rights: Rights of Publicity in the United States and Abroad (Carolina Academic Press 2010). His article, Patent and Copyright Term Extension and the Constitution: A Historical Perspective, 49 J. Copyr. Soc’y U.S.A. 19 (2001), was cited by the U.S. Supreme Court in Eldred v. Ashcroft, 537 U.S. 186 (2003). He has written numerous articles on intellectual property law and has submitted three amicus briefs to the U.S. Supreme Court. Prior to joining the faculty at Santa Clara, he was a Professor and Co-Director of the Center for Intellectual Property Law at Whittier Law School in Costa Mesa, California.

OCIPLA April 2021 Luncheon
2021-04-15 12:00 - 13:00
OCIPLA’s April 2021 Virtual Luncheon
Date: Thursday, April 15, 2021
Time: 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Location: Online only
Topic: Recent Developments in Court Decisions Impacting Patent Damages

SPEAKERS
Kevin McElroy, Stout
Kevin McElroy has 13 years of experience providing consulting services to corporations, law firms, laboratories, government organizations, universities, and individuals in the areas of intellectual property disputes, valuation, monetization, and other intellectual property management issues.
Mr. McElroy’s expert testimony has been accepted in U.S. District Court and he has offered written testimony, deposition testimony, and/or testimony befoe a trier of fact on damages relating to patent infringement, trademark infringement, copyright infringement, trade secret misappropriation, and breach of contract damages. Mr. McElroy’s experience bridges all phases of intellectual property and general commerical litigation support, including discovery assistance, report writing, deposition testimony, trial testimony, and the performance of complex analyses relating to intangible asset valuation and the quantification of economic damages.
Mr. McElroy’s experience spans a breadth of litigation matters, including claims associated with patent infringement, trademark infringement, copyright infringement, trade secret misappropriation, unfair competition, and breach of contract. He has provided consulting services to plaintiffs and defendants faced with complex economic and financial issues surrounding damages, commercial success, preliminary injunctions, and permanent injunctions. Aside from dispute advisory, Mr. McElroy has performed due diligence and valued intellectual property and other intangible assets for a variety of purposes including transactions, litigation avoidance, and the use of IP assets as collateral. He has also assisted in the creation of trademark surveys and provided consulting services to clients attempting to monetize their intellectual property outside the context of litigation. Mr. McElroy has published and presented on topics relating to intellectual property valuation, the calculation of economic damages, and the impact of recent case law on the determination of a reasonable royalty.
Prior to joining Stout, Mr. McElroy worked as an Associate at Intellectual Property Exchange International. Prior to that, he spent four years at Ocean Tomo, where he worked as an Associate in their Expert Testimony Practice with a focus on Intellectual Property matters. Mr.McElroy has an undergraduate degree (cum laude) from Georgetown University and an M.B.A (with honors) from the Chicago Booth School of Business.

OCIPLA March 2021 Luncheon (Online)
2021-03-18 12:00 - 13:00
OCIPLA’s March 2021 Virtual Luncheon
Date: Thursday, March 18, 2021
Time: 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Location: Online only
Topic: IP Assignments in Employment & Contractor Agreements

SPEAKERS
Amy C. Chun
With a practice at the crossroads of information technology, commerce and the law, Amy Chun delivers multi-dimensional legal advice and actionable solutions that are strategic, intentional and directly applicable to her client’s bottom line. As outside intellectual property and technology law counsel for large and small tech, fast-growth and other well-known companies, Amy is skilled in identifying and positioning the challenges and opportunities her clients face in a way that optimizes their commercial agenda.
Amy’s practice is truly broad and deep, and includes due diligence investigations, licensing negotiations, national and international patent prosecution, open source policy assessment and risk mitigation, patent and trade secret litigation, inter partes review, and covered business methods review. While she has worked with a variety of technologies, Amy focuses on distributed computing systems, cybersecurity, fraud prevention/detection, e-commerce, cloud computing, social media, fintech, mobile computing, internet technology, SaaS, big data analytics, and artificial intelligence (AI).
Appreciated for her dedication and hard work in continuously cultivating the confidence and trust of those she serves, Amy delivers a honed ability to formulate successful legal strategies that reinforce and expand her client’s competitive edge. As a result, Amy has been recognized for her skill in IP law and patent practice in the International Law Office’s “Client Choice Awards,” as a “Super Lawyer” and “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers magazine, and is listed among OC METRO magazine’s “OC’s Top Attorneys.” She is an esteemed guest speaker for business, legal and other professional organizations on a variety of substantive disciplines pertaining to the law, IP and IT.
After completing her graduate degree, Amy worked as a Product Manager and Programmer for OR Concepts Applied, a privately owned company which developed route planning systems for stealthy aircraft. She also took time off from Knobbe to clerk for the honorable Mariana J. Pfaelzer, Senior Judge of the U.S. District Court, Central District of California.
Amy understands how businesses work from the inside out, and maintains an inherent respect for financial goals, existing management structures and critical deadlines.

Christy Lea
Christy Lea resolves high-stakes patent and trade secret disputes at both the trial and appellate levels. She has represented clients in the medical device and pharmaceutical industries for nearly two decades. Christy is also an accomplished PTAB trial litigator having served as lead counsel in numerous IPRs.
Notably, Christy co-led the firm’s trial team that won a $70 million jury verdict with $21 million in enhanced damages for CardiAQ in a trade secrets misappropriation case against its former vendor, Neovasc Inc. The National Law Journal ranked this verdict as #6 for IP and #21 overall for verdicts that year. The court also granted CardiAQ co-founders Arshad Quadri, M.D. and Brent Ratz co-inventorship of the Neovasc transcatheter mitral valve patent. The decision made Edwards Lifesciences, which acquired CardiAQ for $400 million, co-owner of the Neovasc patent. Christy continues to represent Edwards Lifesciences in district court and before the PTAB. In addition, Christy represented and currently represents Smith & Nephew in numerous litigations and PTAB trials, including in the “negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) wars” against KCI/Wake Forest, as well as various orthopedics cases.
A formidable advocate both in and out of court, Christy is able to explain even the most sophisticated technologies to judges and juries alike, converting complex information into easily-understood straight-talk. She offers particular skill in working with, positioning, and maximizing fact and expert witnesses in critical patent litigation with hundreds of millions of dollars on the line. Hard-working, ingratiating, persuasive, and always prepared, Christy takes a personal interest in the individuals with whom she works and represents.
Named a “Life Science Star” by Legal Media Group (LMG) Life Sciences, a “Woman to Watch” by the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA), a “Top 10 Life Sciences Litigator” by Managing IP magazine, and a Super Lawyers magazine Southern California “Rising Star” in intellectual property law, Christy believes in service beyond the office. An avid fundraiser for various charities, Christy is also Vice President of the Board of Directors for the Orange County Public Law Center and previously sat on the Advisory Board for the Ole Miss School of Engineering. She was also a founding member of the firm’s Pro Bono and Diversity Committees.

Jen Dibble
Jen is the Senior Director of the Employment Law Department at Edwards Lifesciences and also has responsibility for providing legal support to the Company’s Global Supply Chain operations in Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic. Jen also currently serves on the Company’s COVID Re-Integration Task Force and Vaccine Committee.
Jen joined Edwards in January 2014 and quickly developed a reputation for bringing positivity to even the stickiest of employment law issues. Jen is sought after by clients and colleagues for her thoughtful and strategic advice, her ability to find creative solutions to drive results, and her approachable manner.
Prior to joining Edwards, Jen was Employment Counsel at Broadcom, where she had responsibility for both domestic (US) and international employment law issues. In this role, Jen partnered with the local Human Resources professionals in Broadcom’s APAC and EMEAC regions. Prior to joining Broadcom, Jen was an Employment Law Associate at the law firm of Allen Matkins in Orange County.
Jen received her J.D. and Law and Business Certificate from Vanderbilt University, where she also participated in the University’s
Vanderbilt-in-Venice program. Jen graduated with honors from Harvard University, with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology.
Like many of us, Jen is currently trying to manage this hybrid remote working arrangement with two energetic boys (7 and 5 years) and a 1-year old “pandemic baby” girl. As a result, she was thrilled to be a co-founder of the “Working Parents” Employee Resources Group at Edwards, where working parents can come together to support each other (and sometimes commiserate) around parenting and work-life integration issues.

OCIPLA February 2021 Luncheon (Online)
2021-02-18 08:00 - 17:00
OCIPLA’s February 2021 Virtual Luncheon
Date: Thursday, February 18, 2021
Time: 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Location: Online only
Topic: Strategy for Global Trademark Dispute

SPEAKER
Perry Viscounty is a nationally recognized trial attorney who handles high-stakes cases for companies ranging from Fortune 100 to emerging companies. He handles intellectual property and technology litigation with an emphasis on complex jury trials.
Mr. Viscounty has been recognized as a leading trial lawyer in:
The Legal 500 as a Recommended Lawyer for Intellectual Property 2020
Chambers Global for USA, Intellectual Property: Trademark, Copyright & Trade Secrets 2013, 2015 – 2020
Chambers USA for California Intellectual Property: Trademark, Copyright & Trade Secret 2008 – 2019
Benchmark Litigation as a National Litigation Practice Area Star and Local Litigation Star 2020-2021
The National Law Journal as an Intellectual Property Trailblazer 2018
Daily Journal, ranked among the Top Intellectual Property Lawyers in California (multiple years)
World Trademark Review (WTR) 1000 2020
World Intellectual Property Review as a Leader 2017
The Recorder as Litigation Groundbreaker 2017

Mr. Viscounty is a Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America, a member of the International Trademark Association, and an arbitrator for the World Intellectual Property Organization. He has been a guest lecturer at USC and UCLA, and has taught numerous seminars regarding effective presentations for jury trials and arbitrations.

OCIPLA January 2021 Luncheon (Online Only)
2021-01-21 12:00 - 13:00
OCIPLA’s January 2021 Virtual Luncheon
Date: Thursday, January 21, 2021
Time: 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Location: Online only
Topic: Patent Law Year in Review

SPEAKER
William C. Rooklidge, a partner in the Orange County office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP, joined the firm in 2015. A member of the firm’s Litigation Department and Intellectual Property Practice Group, he has extensive experience in patent and trademark infringement litigation in the federal district courts and before the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, as well as arbitration of patent disputes.
Mr. Rooklidge is an experienced trial lawyer who has successfully handled many significant intellectual property cases since trying his first case as lead trial counsel, a patent infringement case involving power tools, in 1994, when he obtained for his patentee client a judgment of treble damages and attorney fees. Highlights include earning a 2011 defense verdict for his client in a patent infringement case involving internet search advertising in the Eastern District of Texas and securing a 2014 award for his client in a breach of contract arbitration involving a telephony patent license agreement in Zurich, Switzerland. Appellate highlights include overturning a denial of preliminary injunction on patent infringement and defending a client’s trademark registration from charges of abandonment.
Mr. Rooklidge earned a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Portland in 1979 and subsequently worked as an engineer with Tube Forgings of America, earning his Professional Engineers Registration. He earned his law degree from Northwestern School of Law of Lewis & Clark College in 1984, where he served as Associate Editor of Environmental Law, and then a Master of Laws degree in patent and trade regulation from The National Law Center of George Washington University in 1985. After completing his legal education, he served as a law clerk to the Honorable Helen W. Nies, Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, from 1985 to 1987.
Mr. Rooklidge has served as President of the Orange County Patent Law Association, President of the American Intellectual Property Law Association, and Founding Master of the Howard T. Markey Inn of Court. He was recently was listed in The Legal 500 and has been selected by the Southern California legal community for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® since 2006 (including being named Orange County Lawyer of the Year in 2011 (Intellectual Property Law), 2015 (Litigation – Patent), and 2016, 2018 and 2019 (Litigation – Intellectual Property)). Mr. Rooklidge was also recognized by Who’s Who Legal Life Sciences: Patent Litigation 2020 and Who’s Who Legal Patents 2019. He has authored or co-authored over 60 legal publications, including 2011 and 2017 editions of the Federal Judicial Center’s Compensatory Damages Issues in Patent Infringement Cases: A Pocket Guide For Federal District Court Judges.
Mr. Rooklidge is admitted to practice in the federal district courts of California, the Eastern District of Texas, the Central District of Illinois, and the Western District of Wisconsin, as well as the United States Courts of Appeals for the Ninth and Federal Circuits and the United States Supreme Court. He also is admitted to practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
Before joining Gibson Dunn, Mr. Rooklidge was a partner at Jones Day, Howrey, Howard Rice, and Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear.

OCIPLA’s 2020 Holiday Party and Trivia Contest
2020-12-16 17:30 - 18:30
OCIPLA’s 2020 Holiday Party and Trivia Contest
Date: Wednesday, December 16, 2020
Time: 5:30-6:30 pm
Location: Online only

OCIPLA November Luncheon 2020 (online)
2020-11-19 12:00 - 13:00
OCIPLA’s November 2020 Virtual Luncheon
Date: Thursday, November 19, 2020
Time: 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Location: Online only
Topic: Trials during the Pandemic: From Juries to Zoom!

OCIPLA October Luncheon 2020 (online)
2020-10-22 12:00 - 13:00
OCIPLA’s October 2020 Virtual Luncheon
Date: Thursday, October 22, 2020
Time: 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
Location: Online only
Topic: Current trends in online brand enforcement
