ABA Section of Intellectual Property Law conference to feature Maureen Ohlhausen

Maureen K. Ohlhausen, acting chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, along with top officials from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the U.S. Copyright Office, will be speakers at the American Bar Association Section of Intellectual Property Law’s 32nd Annual Intellectual Property Law Conference on April 4-6 in Arlington, Va.

Ohlhausen will be the keynote luncheon speaker on Thursday from noon to 1:30 p.m. She has served on the FTC Commission since April 2012 and was appointed as the acting FTC chairman by President Donald Trump in January 2017.

On Wednesday, the Mark T. Banner Award Luncheon from noon to 1:30 p.m. will honor three recipients for their impact on intellectual property law and/or practice:

Judge Lucy H. Koh, U. S. District Court, Northern District of California in San Francisco

 Don W. Martens, founding partner, Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear LLP in Washington, D.C.

 Kate Darling, MIT Media Lab research specialist, Harvard Berkman Center Fellow, Robot Ethics Expert in Cambridge, Mass.

Other program highlights include:

“Get Ready for Cuba!” — This panel will prepare you and your clients to brand products and protect trademarks in the new Cuban market. Moderator Justin Ourso of Jones Walker LLP in Baton Rouge, La., will be joined by speakers Roberto Albin, Law Office of George C. A. Moore PA, West Palm Beach, Fla.; Christine Haight Farley, American University Washington College of Law, Washington, D.C.; Augusto Maxwell, Akerman LLP, Miami; and Katherine Van Deusen Hely, Caribbean IP, West Palm Beach, Fla.

“Ask the Office: Hot Topics from the US Patent and Trademark Office” — Panelists will discuss the latest USPTO patent initiatives for the U.S. and foreign practice. Joining moderator Marylee Jenkins, Arent Fox LLP, New York, N.Y., will be speakers Mark Powell, USPTO, Alexandria, Va.; and Christal Sheppard, Elijah J. McCoy Midwest Regional USPTO, Detroit, Mich.

“The USPTO Speaks: An Update from the USPTO and TTAB” — Top officials from the USPTO and the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board will discuss the recent rule and practice changes. Panelists include Gerard F. Rogers, Chief Administrative Trademark Judge, TTAB in Alexandria, Va.; and Mary Boney Denison, commissioner for Trademarks, USPTO, Alexandria, Va. Eric Perrott, Gerben Law Firm PLLC, Washington, D.C., is the moderator.
“Are the Times A-Changin’ in Copyright Law?” — Karyn Temple Claggett, Acting Register of Copyrights and Director of the U.S. Copyright Office in Washington, D.C., will be among the panelists discussing laying the groundwork to bring copyright law into the 21st century and copyright modernization. Moderated by Jan Jensen, Jensen Law Firm, Los Angeles, Calif., the panel will also include speakers Allan Robert Adler, Association of American Publishers, Washington, D.C.; Keith Kuperschmid, Copyright Alliance, Washington, D.C.; and Matthew Schruers, Computer & Communications Industry Association, Washington, D.C.

“The (Gold) Stars Realigned: Post Brexit UK” — An international panel will discuss the effects of Brexit on IP rights and the related EU directives, regulations and laws in the wake of the historic UK vote to exit the European Union. Paula Davis of Pfizer Inc., in Madison, N.J., will moderate the panel that includes speakers Thomas Jaeger, University of Vienna in Austria; Luke McDonagh, City, University of London, London, United Kingdom; and Marjan Noor, Allen & Overy LLP, London, United Kingdom.