Press Releases

CHICAGO — Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione, one of the largest intellectual property law firms in the country, announces that thirty-three attorneys from the Chicago office have been named Leading Lawyers in Illinois for 2005 by the Leading Lawyers Network.

According to the Network, a division of the Law Bulletin Publishing Company, “The list of Leading Lawyers is the result of thousands of contacts with Illinois lawyers, asking them which of their peers they believe comprise the top lawyers. The lawyers named have all been selected by their peers as being among the top lawyers in the state.” In order to assemble “the most reputable and experienced” attorneys in their respective practice areas, a survey is sent to every lawyer listed in Sullivan’s Law Directory, asking peers to recommend peers, in fact their own competitors. The lawyers who received the most nominations through the survey process are then reviewed as to their ethical standing and licensure to ensure that there are no legal or ethical violations. Finally, the nominees are reviewed by the Leading Lawyers Network Advisory Board in their state.

The Leading Lawyers from Brinks are:

Glen P. Belvis’ practice encompasses all facets of intellectual property law, including patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets and related antitrust matters. He has substantial patent litigation experience, including bench and jury trials, ITC cases, appeals before the Federal Circuit, and alternate dispute resolutions, and has participated in several multinational litigations involving related patent lawsuits in the U.K., Europe, Asia, Canada and the United States. He has testified as an expert witness on patent and trade secret matters and lectured on patent and antitrust matters at Oxford University. He has experience in patent prosecution, interferences, and proceedings before the PTO board of appeals. Mr. Belvis' experience encompasses a wide range of technologies including medical devices, bio-tech, software, Internet, lasers, paper, polymers, heavy equipment and pharmaceuticals.

Joel W. Benson has more than 25 years of trial and appellate litigation experience in cases involving patents, trade secrets, trademarks, contracts, and related issues concerning the UCC and has negotiated and prepared patent and trade secret licenses, joint development agreements, confidential disclosure agreements, employment agreements for inventors, and invention assignments worldwide. His experience also includes conducting interference proceedings in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, as well as conducting patent infringement and validity investigations.

Jack N. Berenzweig splits his practice between patent litigation, trademark litigation and sports law. He has been particularly active in cases protecting manufacturers against the distribution of counterfeit copies of their products, as well as representing Asian companies in the U.S. with respect to U.S. industrial property matters.

Rodney A. Daniel's trial and counseling practices focus on patent, trade secret and related contract matters involving a wide variety of technologies, including electronics, medical devices, ion beam systems and computer software.

Timothy Q. Delaney's practice concentrates on litigation as well as patent prosecution and counseling. He has held first and second chair responsibility at several trials. He has participated in numerous appeals to Federal Circuit and other federal and state appellate courts. Prior to his legal career, Mr. Delaney worked at a plastic container manufacturer in a variety of positions, including engineering trainee, production supervisor, quality control manager and assistant plant engineer.

Jeffery M. Duncan's practice includes counseling and preparing opinions in patent, trade secret and licensing matters; evaluating, negotiating and drafting technology transfer and joint venture agreements; performing intellectual property evaluations, audits and due diligence reviews; litigating patent and trade secrets cases; and preparing and prosecuting patent applications in the U.S. and abroad. His practice concentrates in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, diagnostics and chemistry.

Thomas J. Filarski's practice includes litigation and counseling in patent, trade secret and related unfair competition law on a variety of inventions, including filtration, medical products, polymers, printing inks, food packaging, jewelry, electro-coating, compact discs, pharmaceuticals, computer connectors, soaps and shampoos, carpet tiles, sewing machines and binding machines.

David S. Fleming has concentrated his practice in trademark law, focusing on litigation in federal courts and before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, counseling and prosecution in the Patent and Trademark Office. He has represented a wide variety of trademark clients in services and manufacturing industries, including worldwide or nationwide companies engaged in Internet search engine services; franchising in areas such as real estate brokerage and hotel services; car rental services; mortgage lending services; asset-based and other business lending services; title insurance and related services; a joint venture of credit card associations providing international standards for security in electronic payment transactions; retailing services; cellular and other communications equipment manufacturing and marketing; truck manufacturing; automobile parts manufacturing; tobacco products; and motion picture services.

William H. Frankel’s practice includes patent, trademark, copyright, trade secrets and unfair competition litigation in jury and non-jury cases, international intellectual property litigation and counseling, and licensing. He has represented domestic and multinational clients in federal courts, before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, before the International Trade Commission and in alternative dispute resolution forums in connection with injunction, trial, contempt and appellate proceedings. Mr. Frankel’s work has involved diverse technologies and business areas; including high speed digital printing, Internet telephony, specialty film packaging, consumer housewares, exercise apparatus, packaging machinery, brake systems, toys, photographs and visual arts. He has counseled clients in the evaluation, protection, procurement, and transfer of intellectual property rights, including providing legal expertise in worldwide patent protection and the coordination of legal strategies in global intellectual property disputes.

John C. Freeman's practice consists of consulting with clients regarding a broad range of intellectual property matters, including patent infringement issues, licensing issues and preparation and prosecution of domestic and international patent applications in the electro-mechanical arts.

Ralph J. Gabric’s practice focuses on patent, trade secrets, copyright, trademark and unfair competition litigation, counseling and prosecution. Technical areas in which he has represented clients include medical devices, electronic trading systems, computers, analytical instrumentation and various technologies in the chemical and food arts. He has lectured on the subject of patent litigation and patent licensing and written about trade dress protection and dispute resolution.

Jerome Gilson is a senior partner at the firm and has specialized in trademark and unfair competition law for more than 40 years. He handles trademark trials and appeals in the federal courts and before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, mediates trademark disputes and handles a wide variety of counseling and drafting in the field.

Raymond W. Green's practice is concentrated in patent prosecution, including patent interferences and re-examinations. He has had primary responsibility for about 40 interferences. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Green was an in-house patent attorney for Procter & Gamble and Associate Patent Counsel for The Carborundum Company. He has worked in technical areas as diverse as food flavorings, detergents, toothpaste, chemical industrial processes, ceramics, abrasives, grinding wheels, sandpaper, refractory fibers, organic chemistry, diamond synthesis, bicycles, infrared detectors, electronic components, chewing gum, animal ear tags, diapers, Internet terminals and biotechnology.

Jeffery A. Handelman is chair of the Trademark Group at Brinks and has served on the firm's Board of Directors and its Executive, Long Range Strategic Planning and Conflicts Committees. Mr. Handelman focuses on trademark, unfair competition, trade dress, dilution, false advertising, copyright, trade secret and licensing matters and is also involved in Internet-related litigation and counseling. His particular areas of expertise include implementing trademark enforcement programs, global trademark dispute resolution, consumer surveys, genericness claims, trademark dilution, trademark priority disputes, trademark abandonment issues, comparative advertising claims, the Madrid System of international registration of trademarks, and practice and procedure in Trademark Trial and Appeal Board proceedings.

Roy E. Hofer is a trial lawyer specializing in patent, trade secret, and related antitrust and contract matters. However, he has also tried felony criminal cases and represented the Illinois Pollution Control Board before the Illinois Supreme Court and the Illinois Appellate Court and the Clean Air Coordinating Committee before the Environmental Control Appeal Board of the City of Chicago.

Cynthia A. Homan's practice is focused nearly exclusively on preparing appellate briefs. She chairs the firm’s Appellate Practice Committee.

Jerold A. Jacover's practice includes experience in patent, copyright and unfair competition matters, including litigation and trials. He has tried successfully cases that have involved a wide variety of technologies. These have included electronic circuitry, remote controls, robotics, electro-mechanical systems, injection molding and food and beverage equipment. Mr. Jacover has litigated Intellectual Property Cases for Abbott Laboratories, The B.F. Goodrich Company, The Coca-Cola Company, Motorola, Inc., etc. He has obtained several multi-million dollar recoveries for various clients, including a judgment in excess of $40 million after a five-week patent jury trial. In December 2005, Mr. Jacover will step down as President of the firm, a position he has held since 2000.

Harold V. Johnson's practice includes litigation in patents, trade secrets, unfair competition and antitrust, patent prosecution and counseling in all areas of intellectual property. His focus is patent litigation and counseling in a wide variety of disciplines including medical devices, semiconductor technology, computer hardware and software, optical storage discs automotive systems and various consumer products. Prior to joining Brinks, Mr. Johnson was an engineer for General Electric Company, where he was responsible for various national defense projects, including the design, installation and support of a multiplexed computer simulation system.

Richard A. Kaplan is a trial lawyer specializing in patent, trade secret and related antitrust, unfair competition and contract matters. He has extensive experience in the litigation of damages in patent infringement and trade secret misappropriation cases and is experienced in jury and bench trials, Federal Circuit appeals and appeals in other federal circuits. Prior to joining Brinks, Mr. Kaplan was responsible for the development of a transportation project to analyze costs for the New Jersey bus transit system, sponsored by the Tri-State Regional Planning Commission.

Bradley G. Lane is a trial lawyer specializing in intellectual property litigation, with an emphasis on patent and trade secret matters, related antitrust and licensing matters, and counseling in domestic and international patent prosecution, patent clearance opinions and oversight of international patent clearance studies. He has experience in jury and bench trials and federal circuit appeals. Mr. Lane currently serves as chair of the Pro Bono Committee at Brinks. Prior to his legal career, Mr. Lane was an engineer responsible for manufacturing process development and design, construction site engineering and management, and process control design and implementation.

Richard G. Lione's practice focuses on prosecution, counseling and litigation involving patents, trade secrets, trademarks and copyrights. He has been counsel to a wide spectrum of clients in numerous jury and non-jury cases involving all aspects of intellectual property law. Mr. Lione's patent litigation experience has involved such diverse technologies as robotics, machine tools, aircraft instrumentation, textile machinery, packaging machinery, publishing equipment, electrical connectors and food chemistry.

John K. Lucas' practice has encompassed patent, trade secrets, trademark and copyright litigation, licensing and counseling. Mr. Lucas has handled intellectual property matters in a wide variety of disciplines, including electronic, electro-mechanical and mechanical systems and food technology.

Robert S. Mallin has litigation experience in a variety of patent and trademark cases, including first chair jury trial and arbitration preparation and participation, taking and defending depositions, preparing and arguing motions, and conducting discovery matters; patent prosecution and counseling, including the use of reexamination to invalidate a patent during litigation; reviewing and evaluating patents for patentability, infringement, and validity opinions; and licensing. He is knowledgeable in such technical areas as metallurgical processing, electromechanical inventions, mechanical inventions, chemical processing, optical fiber connectors, thermoplastic adhesives, the automotive industry and biotechnology.

Laura Beth Miller has litigation experience involving Internet related issues, as well as traditional areas of intellectual property including patent, trademark, trade secret and copyright law. Her non-litigation experience includes counseling clients in patent, trade secret, trademark clearance and use, copyright, antitrust and licensing matters. Her experience spans into areas of technology including chemistry, biotechnology, Internet (computer) and mechanical arts. Ms. Miller has commercial litigation experience in the areas of contracts, product liability, securities violations, RICO violations, unfair competition, antitrust and bankruptcy.

Michael E. Milz counsels clients in avoiding U.S. and foreign patents, as well as prepares and prosecutes U.S. and foreign patents. He has prepared and/or prosecuted more than 100 U.S. patents in such mechanical and related technologies as cranes, medical devices, electro-mechanical devices, harvesting machinery, electric and gas fireplaces, office furniture and machinery for the printing/converting industry. Mr. Milz has litigation experience relating to the infringement, validity and enforceability of patents in numerous commercial and industrial technologies. He also has litigation experience in the areas of trade secret misappropriations, tortious interference with prospective economic advantage and breach of contract.

James P. Naughton's practice focuses on litigation, counseling and prosecution in all areas of intellectual property, with an emphasis in patent matters, licensing, and infringement and validity evaluations in the electrical and mechanical arts.

G. Peter Nichols’ practice has included litigation, counseling, and prosecution, licensing and transfer of intellectual property rights and infringement and validity evaluations in the chemical and mechanical arts. He also has counseling experience, including conducting infringement and validity evaluations of United States and foreign patents, applications, utility models and design rights. Mr. Nichols’s patent prosecution experience includes direct and supervisory responsibility for preparation and prosecution of United States utility and design applications, foreign and PCT patent applications. Subject matters include cosmetics, cleaners, detergents, nutritional supplements, chemical processing, nanotechnology, food technology and power tools. 

William F. Prendergast's litigation practice has included patent, trade secret, copyright and anti-trust matters, including all aspects of discovery, motion practice, trial and settlement negotiations. He has rendered written and oral opinions regarding the non-infringement and invalidity of patents in the mechanical, electromechanical and computer arts and has patent prosecution experience preparing and prosecuting patent applications in the following areas: mechanical (office furniture, including chairs, work surfaces and systems products, refrigeration systems, automated control systems for ships, computer disk drives, packaging machinery and outdoor lighting fixtures), electrical (cellular communication systems, computer hardware and software, electrical and solar control systems for outdoor light fixtures and ultrasound imaging devices), e-commerce and business methods (protection of website design and functionality, e-commerce file importation and export, automated manufacturing and delivery techniques) and licensing.

Gary M. Ropski’s practice focuses on litigation, but has included patent prosecution and litigation, trademark prosecution (including oppositions) and litigation, trade dress litigation, copyright registration and litigation, trade secret litigation, right of publicity counseling, litigation and related unfair competition and antitrust matters in federal and state courts. He has extensive experience in presenting and rebutting damage claims in intellectual property litigation. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Ropski completed a manufacturing management training program in the Transportation Systems Business Division of General Electric Corporation, including both work experience and educational program. On January 1, 2006, Mr. Ropski assumes the position of President of Brinks.

Steven P. Shurtz specializes in U.S. patent application preparation and prosecution, foreign patent prosecution, patent opinion and counseling. He is experienced in supervising patent procurement activities of client companies, including foreign patent strategies, oppositions and the use of the Patent Cooperation Treaty and regional patent offices, as well as preparing and prosecuting patent applications on individual chemical and mechanical inventions, including appeals to the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences. He also has experience in patent infringement/validity and right to use opinions and license agreements; trade secrets audits, analysis and agreements; and training seminars for client employees. Prior to attending law school, Mr. Shurtz was involved in a pilot plant process development of chemical demilitarization.

Gustavo Siller, Jr. specializes in patent, trade secrets and unfair competition litigation, counseling and prosecution and interference. His practice includes trial work and counseling in patent and anti-trust litigation relating to analog and digital technology, medical devices, computer design, semiconductor technology, expert systems, software related technology, conveyor devices and packaging technology. Mr. Siller currently serves as the chairman of the Electrical/Computer Group at Brinks. As a patent attorney for the U.S. Department of Energy, Mr. Siller’s responsibilities included patent prosecution, counseling and reviewing claims of patent infringement by the Department of Energy in various technical fields.

James R. Sobieraj has experience in the procurement, licensing and enforcement of intellectual property rights. He has been lead counsel in cases involving patent infringement, ownership of patent rights, license disputes, misappropriation of trade secrets, trade dress infringement, unfair competition, false advertising, defamation, fraud, RICO and antitrust. His litigation experience includes bench and jury trials, temporary restraining orders, preliminary injunctions, Markman hearings, appeals and various forms of alternate dispute resolution and has represented companies in a variety of technologies including analog and digital electronics, microprocessors, electrical and optical connectors, avionics, robotics, software, e-commerce, electromechanical transducers and control circuits, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, infant formula, micro-porous filter membranes, food sterilization, hydraulics, automotive components, carbon block filters, chemical compositions, packaging material and various consumer goods.

Dominic P. Zanfardino's has practiced intellectual property law and related matters exclusively since joining the firm in 1990. His practice focuses on intellectual property litigation, and includes complex cases, TRO and preliminary injunction proceedings, and appellate practice before the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. He also provides general intellectual property counseling primarily in areas relating to biotechnology and medical devices. He is admitted to practice in several district and appellate courts throughout the country as well as the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

Founded in 1917, Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione is based in Chicago with three other offices across the country and serves the intellectual property needs of clients from around the world. The firm is one of the largest IP law firms in the country, with more than 150 attorneys, scientific advisors and patent agents who specialize in all aspects of patent, trademark, copyright, trade secret and unfair competition, licensing agreements, technology, nanotechnology and bio-pharma work, intellectual asset management and intellectual property litigation.