Committees

Programming Chair: Judy He

Programming Vice-Chair: Azuka Dike


Committee

Focus

Chair

Vice Chair

Liaison

Advertising

Plans presentations on legal issues relating to advertising.

Liz Brodzinski
Aristocrat
Liz.Brodzinski@aristocrat.com

Kerianne Strachan
Fitch Even Tabin & Flannery LLP
kstrachan@fitcheven.com

Laura M. Schaefer
Leydig Voit & Mayer
lschaefer@leydig.com

Agents

Plans presentations and meetings on topics of interest to patent agents.

Jagriti Ritu Chander
Helix Patent Services LLC

ritu@helixpatents.com

Natasha Sansone
natashadanielle36@gmail.com

Jagriti Ritu Chander
Helix Patent Services LLC
ritu@helixpatents.com

AIA Trials

Issues related to PTAB AIA trials.

Joshua James
Crowell & Moring LLP
jjames@crowell.com

Nathan Sportel
Husch Blackwell
Nathan.Sportel@huschblackwell.com

William (Bill) Beckman
Progress Rail, a Caterpillar Company
Beckman_Bill@cat.com

Appointments

Assists IPLAC in promoting IP attorneys for judicial and other governmental openings.

Dr. E. Kate Berezutskaya
Greer, Burns & Crain, Ltd.
kberezutskaya@gbclaw.net

Marc V. Richards
Crowell & Moring LLP
mrichards@crowell.com

Tiffany D. Gehrke
Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP

tgehrke@marshallip.com

Biotechnology

Plans meetings on biotechnology topics of interest.

Stephanie Nelson
Square Trade
stnelson@squaretrade.com


 

Andrew Wood
Neal, Gerber & Eisenberg LLP
awood@nge.com

Kwanwoo Lee
UnitedHealth Group
kwanwoo.lee@uhg.com

CLE

Assists IPLAC in tracking CLE credit awarded for IPLAC programs.

Matthew Marrone
McAndrews, Held & Malloy, Ltd.

mmarrone@mcandrews-ip.com

Jaimin Shah
Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP
jshah@taftlaw.com

Peter J. Prommer
Michael Best & Friedrich LLP
pjprommer@michaelbest.com

Copyright

Plans meetings on copyright topics of interest.

Adam Wolek
Fox Rothschild LLP
awolek@foxrothschild.com

Anthony Denis
Banner Witcoff

adenis@bannerwitcoff.com

Selena Spritz
Walgreen Co.
selena.spritz@walgreens.com

Creator of the Year

Solicits nominations for an award presented to a person or organization for a significant or unique creating in any aspect of IP.

Rathna Koka
JP Morgan Chase & Co
Rathna.r.koka@JPMChase.com

Vangelis Economou
Economou IP Law
van@economouIP.com

Dunstan Barnes
McAndrews, Held & Malloy, Ltd
dbarnes@mcandrews-ip.com
 

Dinner (Judges and Annual)

Plans the IPLAC Annual Dinner in May and the Annual Dinner Honoring the Federal Judiciary.

Alisa Simmons
Fitch Even Tabin & Flannery LLP

asimmons@fitcheven.com 

Julianne Hartzell
Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP
jhartzell@marshallip.com

Laura M. Schaefer
Leydig Voit & Mayer
lschaefer@leydig.com

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee

Promotes diversity, equity, and inclusion within IPLAC itself and the Chicago IP Community at-large through programming,  outreach, opportunities for mentorship and sponsorship, assessing opportunities for improving diversity, and formulating diversity, equity, and inclusion strategies.

Kiana Baharloo
Quarles & Brady
kiana.baharloo@quarles.com

Ashley Hatzenbihler
MBHB
ahhatzenbihler@mbhb.com

Lauren Segal
MBHB

segal@mbhb.com

Novaira T. Paul
Pattishall

NTP@pattishall.com



Atanu Das
Guntin & Gust
Atanu.Das@ggip.com

Ethics and Grievances

Conducts IPLAC ethics and grievance hearings.

Per the by-laws, this committee consists of the President, President-Elect, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer.

 

N/A

Field Day

Plans the golf tournament and other events for IPLAC’s Annual Field Day.

Evan Kline-Wedeen
Faegre Drinker
evan.kline-wedeen@faegredrinker.com 

Adam Michael Janes
Kirkland & Ellis

adam.janes@kirkland.com

Rachel Miller
Greer, Burns & Crain Ltd.

rmiller@gbc.law

Brian A. Verbus
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
brian.verbus@kirkland.com

 

Foundation Liaison

Liaises between IPLAC Educational Foundation and IPLAC leadership and Board.

Tanya Miari
McDonald's Corporation
Tanya.Miari@us.mcd.com

 

Matthew Kelly
Chief IP Counsel LLC
matthew.kelly@chiefipcounsel.com

In-House
(formerly Corporate)

Plans meetings and presentations on topics of interest to IP attorneys working in corporate law departments. Members of this committee are limited to corporate practitioners.

Jasmine Davis
ConAgra
jasmine.davis@conagra.com

Karina Wong
Meta
karina.y.wong@gmail.com

 

Selena Spritz
Walgreen Co.
selena.spritz@walgreens.com

International Relations 

Focuses on IPLAC’s international presence. Seeks, addresses, and facilitates opportunities for members to liaise concerning IP with representatives of bar associations and governmental offices outside the U.S.

Tron Fu
Steptoe & Johnson LLP
tfu@Steptoe.com

Ryan Phelan
Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP
rphelan@marshallip.com

Erin W. Lothson
Uber Technologies, Inc.
erin.lothson@uber.com
 

Law School Outreach

Plans programming for the local law school students. Promotes camaraderie with the law schools.

Professor Cynthia Ho
Loyola University School of Law
Cho@luc.edu

Professor David L. Schwartz
Northwestern University School of Law
david.schwartz@law.northwestern.edu

Atanu Das
Guntin & Gust
Atanu.Das@ggip.com

Licensing  

Plans and hosts programs related to licensing and other technology transfer and intellectual property rights.

Francesca Cardillo
Norton Rose Fullbright
francesca.cardillo@nortonrosefulbright.com    

Cole Hardy
Walgreens
cole.hardy@walgreens.com

 

Matthew Kelly
Chief IP Counsel LLC
matthew.kelly@chiefipcounsel.com

Litigation

Plans seminars on issues relating to IP litigation.

R. David Donoghue
Holland & Knight LLP

david.donoghue@hklaw.com

James Heracklis
Michael Best

joheracklis@michaelbest.com

Paulina Starostka
Nixon Peabody

pstarostka@nixonpeabody.com

 

Wasim Bleibel
Locke Lord LLP
wbleibel@lockelord.com

Litigation: Amicus

Tracks and identifies amicus opportunities and proposes and prepares amicus briefs to be submitted by IPLAC.

Bob Resis
Banner & Witcoff
resis@bannerwitcoff.com

Margaret M. Duncan
Loyola University Chicago School of Law
mduncan@luc.edu

Dunstan Barnes
McAndrews, Held & Malloy, Ltd
barnes@mcandrews-ip.com

Litigation: Claim Construction

Prepares annual book and update on recent cases involving claim construction issues.

Kevin E. Noonan, Ph.D.
McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert &
Berghoff LLP
noonan@mbhb.com

Adam G. Kelly
Loeb & Loeb LLP
akelly@loeb.com

Tiffany D. Gehrke
Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP

tgehrke@marshallip.com

Membership

Develops plans for recruiting and retaining IPLAC members, evaluates applications for membership in IPLAC, and plans a reception for new members and committee chairs.

Kenny Matuszewski
Goldberg Segalla
kmatuszewski@goldbergsegalla.com

Joshua Smith
Crowell & Moring LLP
jsmith@crowell.com

Peter J. Prommer
Michael Best & Friedrich LLP
pjprommer@michaelbest.com

Mentoring

Manages IPLAC’s mentoring program.

Wasim Bleibel
Locke Lord LLP
wbleibel@lockelord.com

Ashly I. Boesche
Pattishall
aib@pattishall.com

Kenny Matuszewski
Goldberg Segalla
kmatuszewski@goldbergsegalla.com

Wasim Bleibel
Locke Lord LLP
wbleibel@lockelord.com

Moot Court Competition Liaison - Giles Rich

Coordinates with Midwest Regional planning committee to host moot court competition and recruit volunteer bailiffs.

Shane Brunner
Michael Best
sabrunner@michaelbest.com

 

 

 

Moot Court Competition Liaison - Saul Lefkowitz

Coordinates with Midwest Regional planning committee to host moot court competition and recruit volunteer bailiffs.

Tanya Miari
McDonald's Corporation

Tanya.Miari@us.mcd.com

 

Selena Spritz
Walgreen Co.
selena.spritz@walgreens.com

 

Newsletter

Prepares the IPLAC newsletter for distribution to all members. Assists the organization in promoting IPLAC programs, events & activities.

Adam Sussman
Crowell & Moring LLP

asussman@crowell.com

Arvin Hosseini
IIT Chicago Kent Law
ahosseini@kentlaw.iit.edu

Mary F. Fetsco
Fitch, Even, Tabin & Flannery LLP

mfetsco@fitcheven.com

Paralegal

Plans presentations and meetings on topics of interest to paralegals. Plans networking and social events for members.

Regina Blaskie
Fitch Even Tabin & Flannery
rblaskie@fitcheven.com

Lisa Becker
JP Morgan Chase & Co

lisa.becker@jpmchase.com 


Kwanwoo Lee
UnitedHealth Group
kwanwoo.lee@uhg.com

Patents - U.S.

Sponsors presentations on changes in U.S. patent law and procedures and regulations at USPTO. Also recommends to IPLAC leadership and board on whether IPLAC should take action on proposed legislation and regulation.

Yoni Torchman
Torchman IP
yoni.torchman@torchmanip.com

Shannon Hughes Mastick
Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP
smastick@marshallip.com

Jagriti Ritu Chander
Helix Patent Services LLC
ritu@helixpatents.com

Privacy

Plans and hosts programs related to privacy law.

Stephanie Cueman
Meta

stephaniecueman@gmail.com

Greg Leighton
Polsinelli PC

gleighton@polsinelli.com

Erin W. Lothson
Uber Technologies, Inc.
erin.lothson@uber.com

Symposium

Plans and sponsors annual patent seminar on developments in patent law.

Julie L. Langdon
Vedder Price
jlangdon@vedderprice.com

James Muraff
McDonald Hopkins
jmuraff@mcdonaldhopkins.com

Matthew Marrone
McAndrews, Held & Malloy, Ltd.
mmarrone@mcandrews-ip.com

Kwanwoo Lee
UnitedHealth Group
kwanwoo.lee@uhg.com

Michelle E. Kouba
Michael Best
MEKouba@michaelbest.com

Stephen Kudla
Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP
skudla@marshallip.com

Joseph "Casey" Mangan
The Sedona Conference
jrm@sedonaconference.org

Tiffany D. Gehrke
Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP

tgehrke@marshallip.com

Trade Secrets & Unfair Competition

Sponsors an annual in-depth seminar on new developments in trade secret and unfair competition.

Brad Lane
Crowell & Moring LLP
blane@crowell.com

Tim Oliver
Grogan Hesse & Udistky PC

Toliver@ghulaw.com

William (Bill) Beckman
Progress Rail, a Caterpillar Company
Beckman_Bill@cat.com

Trademarks & Anti-Counterfeiting

Plans and hosts presentations on changes in U.S. trademark law and procedures and regulations at USPTO. Also recommends to IPLAC leadership and board on whether IPLAC should take action on proposed legislation and regulation.

Janet Lee
Banner & Witcoff, Ltd. 
jjlee@bannerwitcoff.com



Donielle Robinson
Reed Smith
donielle.robinson@reedsmith.com

Karen S. Hwang
KSH Law Group
khwang@kshlawgroup.com

Website

 

Assists the organization in maintaining the IPLAC website (www.IPLAC.org), emailing communications to membership, and planning website improvements.

Mary F. Fetsco
Fitch, Even, Tabin & Flannery LLP

mfetsco@fitcheven.com

Abby Neu
Venable
AMNeu@Venable.com

 

Mary F. Fetsco
Fitch, Even, Tabin & Flannery LLP

mfetsco@fitcheven.com

Women in IP

Plans and hosts programs and meetings of interest to women IP practitioners. Hosts annual judicial panel and progressive networking dinner.

Jacquelyn Prom
Pattishall McAuliffee
JRP@pattishall.com

Mary LaFleur
Crowell & Moring LLP
mlafleur@crowell.com

Karen S. Hwang
KSH Law Group
khwang@kshlawgroup.com

Young Members

Plans networking and social events targeted to younger (and young at heart) members.

Rachel Miller
Greer, Burns & Crain, Ltd.
rmiller@gbc.law

 

Lydia Bayley
Global IP Counselors

bayleyly@gmail.com

Kristin Holmes
Dinsmore

Kristin.Holmes@dinsmore.com

Louay Meroueh
Loyola University Chicago School of Law

lmeroueh@luc.edu

Madeline P. Paradkar
UIC School of Law

mparad5@uic.edu

Dunstan Barnes
McAndrews, Held & Malloy, Ltd
barnes@mcandrews-ip.com