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ANN ARBOR – Michael N. Spink, a shareholder in the Ann Arbor office of Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione, one of the largest intellectual property law firms in the U.S., has been named a member of the Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO) Corporate IP Management Committee for 2012-2013. IPO is a trade association for owners of patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets.

Mr. Spink’s intellectual property law practice at Brinks focuses on all aspects of client counseling, including procurement, licensing and opinions on patents, trademarks and copyrights, in numerous industries including the automotive, medical device and software industries. He also has extensive experience in complex transactions involving intellectual property, including due diligence, landscape analysis for new products and bankruptcy issues.

In addition to his role with IPO, Mr. Spink serves as chair of Brinks Intellectual Asset Management Group, which works to link intellectual asset/portfolio development strategies to business and product strategies and provides intellectual property protection, product clearance and risk assessment, and validity/infringement analyses and opinions. He is also co-chair of the Michigan Chapter of the Licensing Executives Society and a contributing author on copyright law for Landslide, a quarterly publication of the American Bar Association.

Mr. Spink is a resident of Green Oak Township and holds a J.D. from the John Marshall Law School and a B.S. in mechanical engineering from the University of Michigan. He has twice been named a Rising Star by Michigan Super Lawyers, which recognizes the top up-and-coming attorneys in the state who are 40 years old or younger.

Established in 1972, IPO is the only association in the U.S. that serves all intellectual property owners in all industries and all fields of technology. IPO advocates effective and affordable IP ownership rights and provides a wide array of services to members. It concentrates on: supporting member interests relating to legislative and international issues; analyzing current IP issues; providing information and educational services; and disseminating information to the general public on the importance of intellectual property rights. Learn more at www.ipo.org.

Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione
Brinks has over 140 attorneys, scientific advisors and patent agents who specialize in intellectual property, making it one of the largest intellectual property law firms in the U.S. Clients around the world use Brinks to help them identify, protect, manage and enforce their intellectual property. Brinks lawyers provide expertise in all aspects of patent, trademark, unfair competition, trade secret and copyright law. The Brinks team includes lawyers with bachelors and advanced degrees in all fields of technology and science. Brinks has offices in Chicago, Washington, D.C., Research Triangle Park, Salt Lake City, Ann Arbor and Indianapolis. More information is available at www.usebrinks.com.