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Mary M. Squyres

Practice Summary

Protecting trademarks in international jurisdictions is a complex and nuanced area of legal practice. Leading trademark holders have come to rely on Mary Squyres for precisely her awareness of those complexities and nuances, for her intimate knowledge of the legal process in different countries, and her appreciation for the different strategies and practices that need to be considered in order to succeed.

Squyres has experience with international trademark litigation, licensing and prosecution, including developing international filing strategies, negotiating worldwide mutual co-existence agreements, and adopting effective enforcement strategies to defend her clients’ marks and prevent infringements. She works with leading clients in transportation, consumer retail, the food industry, and in academia, and has managed numerous trademark actions in more than a dozen jurisdictions in Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

“Operating across borders to expedite clients’ interests can be a delicate balance,” notes Squyres, a shareholder at Brinks since 1997 and chair of the firm’s International Trademark practice. “You have to establish and maintain a rapport with counsel overseas. You have to work collegially, respect others’ points of view, and learn the values, processes, and inclinations of a court in another jurisdiction. But you still need to push for the interests of your clients—and get results.”

“That’s what makes this area of practice unique, and it’s very much part of its appeal,” adds this 30-year veteran of handling international trademark matters, who is charged with managing more than 15,000 active trademark files by her clients, and who oversees a staff of eight. “It doesn’t work to impose U.S. standards on foreign systems; you have to walk in their moccasins and understand how to operate in their system.”

Honors/Distinctions
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  • Burton Awards for Legal Achievement - Law Firm Legal Writing Award, 2012
  • World Trademark Review 1000 – The Definitive Guide to Trademark Legal Services, Tier 1, 'Individuals - Non-Contentious,'  'Silver Band - Enforcement and Litigation,' 2011, 2012, 2013 
  • IP Star, Managing Intellectual Property magazine, 2013
  • Leading Lawyers in Illinois, 2006-2012
  • Guide to the World’s Leading Women in Business Law, 2nd edition, 2012
  • The Best Lawyers in America, 2009-2013
  • The International Who’s Who of Trademark Lawyers, 2011, 2012 
  • Leading Lawyers Network, Top 100 Women Business Lawyers in Illinois, 2009, 2010-2012 
  • Illinois Super Lawyers 2005-2008, International Law
Representative Matters
Trademark Litigation
  • Summary judgment order from the High Court United Kingdom ordering the other side to stop all uses of the infringing mark and to pay ₤50,000 in costs
  • Preliminary Injunction from the High Court of India which forced the other side to stop use of the infringing mark.
  • Supreme Court victory in the Philippines, after 5 years, holding the client to be owner of its mark, thereby preventing a cancellation of the mark.
  • Appellate victory in India whereby cancellation of the other side’s mark was upheld, resulting in a settlement favorable to the client.
Publications
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  • "Trademark Practice Throughout the World,"  three-volume treatise, West Group, May 2001-Present
  • “Radical Changes to the .com Arena,” Navigating ICANN’s New Rules Regarding Generic Top-Level Domain Names, Thomson Reuter, 2012
  • “The New gTLDs”, Intellectual Property Counselor, Thomson West, April 2011
  • “The New gTLDs”, Michigan International Lawyer, International Law Section, State Bar of Michigan, February 2011
  • "Geographical Indications in the Trademark Arena," Thomson West, 2007
  • "Licensing Law Handbook," co-author, West Group, 2001
  • "Enforcement of Domain Name Rights Through ICANN," Intellectual Property & Technology Law Journal, Vol. 13, No. 3, March 2001, pp. 8-11
  • "Filing Domain Names on the Internet," www.ecfonet.com, Spring 2001
  • "Filing Domain Names on the Internet," The John Marshall Center for Intellectual Property Law News Source, Vol. III, No. 1, Winter 2001, pp. 28-29
  • "Inside International Trademark Litigation," Journal of Proprietary Rights, May 1999
  • "New Treaties Add Protections For Well-Known Marks," IP World-Wide (a National Law Journal IP publication), May-June 1997, p. 30
  • "Trademark Use On The Internet -- A Global Analysis," Trademark World, March 1996
  • "EU Creates New Trademark System," co-authored with Jerome Gilson, IP World-Wide (a National Law Journal IP publication), September 1995
  • "Licensing Trademarks and Service Marks under NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement)," Intellectual Property Strategist (a Leader publication), October 1994
  • "Licensing and Franchising in the European Economic Community and the European Economic Area," Licensing Law and Business Report, July-August, 1993
  • "The Madrid Protocol: An American Perspective," McGeorge School of Law Waidring (Austria) Institute (March, 1993), Kluwer Academic Publishers, 1994
Presentations
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  • "The gTLDs: Looking Back and Going Forward," ICLE 2013 Intellectual Property Law Spring Seminar, Lansing, Mich., March 25, 2013
  • "Creation of a Global Brand-Treaties," West LegalEdcenter webcast, October 24, 2012
  • "The New gTLDs: How to Apply for Them and How to Defend Against Them," Michigan State Bar Association's 2012 Intellectual Property Law Spring Seminar East Lansing, Michigan, March 26, 2012
  • "Creation of a Global Brand,” West LegalEdcenter webinar, September 28, 2011
  • “To Sue or Not to Sue - Overseas” Chicago Bar Association, October 27, 2009
  • Thomson – Reuters – West Conference – Global Litigation, August 5, 2009
  • Valuation of Intellectual Property Assets, National CLE Conference, Vail, Colorado, January 2009
  • "International Filing Strategies - Practical Advice" and "Beyond Dependency," Moderator, 2008 INTA/WIPO International Forum on Trademarks and Industrial Designs, Brussels, Belgium, September 24, 2008
  • "International Brand Protection Strategies," ISBA Law Ed Series, Chicago, Illinois, June 12, 2008
  • "Ambush Marketing: Right or Wrong?" National CLE Conference, Intellectual Property, Vail, Colorado, January 6, 2008
  • “Trademark Law: US and International Update,” Panelist, Update on Intellectual Property Law and the Internet, Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione Seminar, Chicago, April 18, 2006
  • “Trademark Case Law Throughout the World,” 2004 International Trademark Forum, The Institute of Continuing Education (ICLE), Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Western Michigan University Graduate Center, Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Oakland University Center, Rochester, Michigan, October 19 and 20, 2004
  • “The Community Trade Mark and the Madrid Protocol,” 2004 International Trademark Forum, ICLE, Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Western Michigan University Graduate Center, Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Oakland University Center, Rochester, Michigan, October 19 and 20, 2004
  • "The Community Trade Mark and the Madrid Protocol: Choices – CTM, NSF, or IR with EU?," McGill University, Montreal, Canada, August 11, 2004
  • "How to Police a Trademark on the Internet," Sky Radio Network, July 29, 2004
  • "The Internet Arena: Other Countries Catch-up to the U.S.," Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione Client Seminar and Golf Outing, June 21, 2004
  • "Global Licensing: A License to Use," Handling Intellectual Property Issues in Business Transactions seminar sponsored by the Patent Law Institute, Chicago, Illinois, April 22, 2004
  • "National and International Registrations: CTM, MP or NF?," Trademark and Design Filing Strategies in a Changing Landscape seminar sponsored by The John Marshall Law School, Chicago, Illinois, October 21, 2003
  • "Madrid Protocol: New Strategies for Filing – Do I or Don’t I?," Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione Client Seminar, Chicago, Illinois, September 23, 2003
  • "National and International Registrations: CTM, MP or NF?," Madrid Protocol Educational Forum, Thomson & Thomson 14th Annual Educational Forum Series, San Francisco, California, September 9, 2003
  • "Impact of Madrid Protocol on the Lanham Act," IP Master Seminar, Chicago, Illinois, September 8, 2003
  • "European Filing Options: Choices – CTM, NSF, or IR with EU?," McGill University, Montreal, Canada, August 13, 2003
  • "Madrid Protocol: Do I or Don’t I?" Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione Client Seminar and Golf Outing, Chicago, Illinois, June 23, 2003
  • ”National and International Registrations: CTM, MP, or NF?," Madrid Protocol Forum for U.S. Practitioners sponsored by the International Trademark Association, Washington, D.C., June 15-16, 2003; Chicago, Illinois, June 18, 2003; San Francisco, California, June 19-21, 2003
  • "Impact of Madrid Protocol on the Lanham Act," International Trademark Association Annual Meeting, Amsterdam, May 7, 2003
  • "Global Licensing: A License to Use," Handling Intellectual Property Issues in Business Transactions seminar sponsored by the Patent Law Institute, Chicago, Illinois, April 24, 2003
  • "Filing Treaties: To Do or Not to Do," University of Victoria, Victoria, Canada, July 9-10, 2002
  • "Trademark Tidbits from the Rest of the World," Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione Client Seminar and Golf Outing, Chicago, Illinois, July 15, 2002
  • "They Keep dot COMing – Legal Issues on the Internet, A Global Perspective," co-presenter with Joseph V. Norvell, Brinks Hofer Client Seminar and Golf Outing, Chicago, Illinois, June, 2001
  • "Trademark Basics," INTA conference, February 2001
  • "Licensing in Cyberspace," The John Marshall Law School seminar, February 2001
  • "Enforcement of Domain Name Rights Through ICANN," The John Marshall Law School seminar, February 2001
  • "Trademarks on the Internet: A Global Perspective," Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione client seminar, Chicago, Illinois, March 2001
  • "Global Trends In The Trademark Law," International Intellectual Property Association (IIPA) Annual Meeting, Washington, D.C., October 14, 1998
  • "Conducting An IP Audit, Now You Own It, Now You Don’t," 11th Annual Symposium on Intellectual Property Law and the Corporate Client, Northwestern University School of Law, Chicago, Illinois, October 7, 1998
  • "Lawyer Networking," Valparaiso University School of Law, Valparaiso, Indiana, October 1, 1998
  • "International Trademark Filing Strategies in Europe," Association of Collegiate Licensing Administrators (ACLA), Annual Conference, Baltimore, Maryland, April 9-12, 1997
  • "The Fame Game: Treaties As The Trump Card," IPLAC Annual Trademark Seminar on Well-Known Marks, Chicago, Illinois, March 25, 1997
  • "Intellectual Property - What Is It?," Highland Rotary Club, Highland, Indiana, December 11, 1996; and Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, Mass Media Advertising Class, February 5, 1997
  • "Trademark Law Treaty," MARQUES Annual Conference, Stockholm, Sweden, September, 1996
  • "Charting The Course: Where To File (Factors Which Affect Global Trademark Filings)," INTA Annual Conference, May, 1996
  • "The Madrid Protocol," INTA Annual Conference, 1995; MARQUES Annual Conference, Vienna, Austria, September, 1994; and Toronto, Canada, Patent and Trademark Group, May, 1994
  • "EC Licensing," AIPLA Meeting, Cleveland, Ohio, April, 1994
Memberships & Affiliations
  • International Trademark Association (INTA)
  • MARQUES
  • European Community Trade Mark Association (ECTA)
Legal Experience

Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione, Chicago, Illinois
1991 - Present
Shareholder, January 1, 1997 - January 1, 2001
Of Counsel, January 2, 2001 - December 31, 2007
Shareholder, January 1, 2008 - Present

Sears, Roebuck and Co., Chicago, Illinois
Special Assistant to Corporate General Counsel
Lobbyist
Management of Foreign Trademarks for Sears' entities
 

Teaching Experience

Cooley Law School, Rochester, Michigan
Visiting Professor, The Community Trade Mark and the Madrid Protocol 

The John Marshall Law School, Chicago, Illinois
Adjunct Professor, Legal Writing for Intellectual Property Practice 

McGill University, Montreal, Canada
Visiting Professor, The Community Trade Mark and the Madrid Protocol

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