We are proud to announce that Schwabe has brought on board seven new IP attorneys who will be based in the firm’s Mountain View and Portland offices.

A group of four attorneys from a prominent Silicon Valley-based IP firm have joined Schwabe. Michael Bernadicou brings 25+ years of experience protecting intellectual property for Fortune 500 and startup clients in addition to extensive technology experience working as a process engineer prior to becoming an attorney. Justin Brask, who holds a Ph.D. in Chemistry and was a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, worked as a researcher at Intel where he was recognized as the Intel Oregon inventor of the year from 2003 to 2005 for having the most patents filed in each of those years, and was on a team that received the 2003 Intel Achievement Award for “The Development of the World’s First High-K/Metal-Gate CMOS Transistor with Record-Setting Performance.” In addition to their stellar experience and client relationships, Michael and Justin bring with them their team: Eric Blank, Estiven Rojo, and four staff members. Eric’s technical breadth and degree in materials engineering, with a focus on semiconductor technologies, allow him to excel in the prosecution of inventions and in communicating clearly and effectively with inventors and decision makers in high-tech environments. Prior to law school, Estiven worked for five years as an electrical engineer in an engineering consulting firm and then on NASA’s Space Program Operations Contract, where he was a design engineer focused on the integrated electronic assemblies on solid rocket boosters. Abdul Abdullahi, a patent attorney with an electrical engineering degree who also previously worked with this group at the same IP firm in the Silicon Valley, has also joined Schwabe. Abdul advises clients and foreign associates on IP, including subject matter eligibility in the post-Alice era, virtual marking in the post-AIA era, and licenses involving open source software.

This is a team of intellectual property and patent strategists with a special emphasis on semiconductor, mechanical systems (MEMS), electronics, wireless communications, Internet technologies, clean tech, life sciences and medical devices. They add to Schwabe’s depth of industry and academic experience, which helps us see things from the client’s perspective.

“We came on board with Schwabe because of its commitment to the tech industry, momentum in the market and caliber of clients that have the right synergy with our practice. We are excited to be a part of this team that has a long history of securing, protecting, and commercializing clients’ intellectual property rights, both in the United States and abroad. Joining Schwabe provides our clients with forward-thinking service and a full-service platform with tremendous resources that will also allow us to serve our clients in areas outside of IP.” ‎— ‎Michael Bernadicou 

Schwabe has also added Stephen Sullivan to the Mountain View office. Stephen is a Silicon Valley veteran with 20+ years of experience practicing intellectual property law, primarily in patent prosecution, who has also started and managed two law firms. Stephen focuses primarily on the software and electronic arts in fields such as digital imaging devices, video processing, computer graphics, software anti-piracy, encryption, networking, semiconductor devices, speech and handwriting recognition, databases, multiprocessing computer systems, and bioinformatics. A new IP Associate, Jonathan Ward, has also joined Schwabe’s Portland office. Jonathan has 16 years of experience, including with the Oregon DOJ and in private practice, and a background in computer science. Jonathan’s patent experience is directed to hardware and software innovations, including embedded systems and unmanned aerial vehicles. 

“Some of the world’s leading technology companies rely on these IP strategists to protect their critical innovations. These new team members bring a wealth of knowledge, skill, and experience to our existing intellectual property practice. We are thrilled to have the opportunity to collaborate with them as we grow our presence in Mountain View and continue to deliver world class legal service to our clients throughout the Pacific Northwest and beyond.” 
— Brenna Legaard, Schwabe’s Technology Industry Group Leader

Schwabe’s IP practice is now 40+ attorneys strong with an exceptional team of highly experienced paralegals. It is one of the largest IP groups in a full-service law firm in the Pacific Northwest. The backgrounds of these new team members align strongly with Schwabe’s existing team and goal to stay on the cutting edge of where the global economy and the tech industry are headed.

About Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt
Schwabe has been a key driver, leader and contributor to the growing technology sector in the Pacific Northwest. By closely partnering with our tech clients, we understand their full range of needs and can guide them through every phase of growth, including business formation and financing, intellectual property protection and enforcement, licensing and distribution, privacy and data security, employment and immigration, real estate, tax and litigation. With more than 170 attorneys, Schwabe is an industry focused law firm with offices in Portland, Mountain View, Seattle, Vancouver, Bend, Eugene, and Salem.