Steve Bauer spent most of his career at Medtronic and 3M, representing medical device business units and in several legal management roles. In his last role before retirement, Steve handled International IP and IP Policy for Medtronic. Steve has served in several roles in IPO including Co-Chair of the IPO International Patent Law and Trade Committee, Vice Chair of the Asian Practice Committee, and on the IPO Board in 2016. In his retirement, he has continued to volunteer for IPO including on the IPO Special 301 Comment team.

Jake Ewerdt is the Senior Counsel for Global IP Policy at Qualcomm where he provides strategic guidance on global intellectual property and standards policy with a focus on emerging issues in patent protection, licensing, and enforcement. Previously, Mr. Ewerdt served in the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) within the Executive Office of the President, where he developed, shaped, and implemented U.S. trade policy on intellectual property. He represented the U.S. at the WTO TRIPS Council, negotiated the IP Chapter of a draft U.S. trade agreement, and engaged with IP and trade authorities across Europe, the Americas, the Middle East, and Africa. Before USTR, Mr. Ewerdt litigated patent disputes at a global law firm, clerked at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and advised Administrative Law Judges at the U.S. International Trade Commission. Mr. Ewerdt is an inventor, a registered USPTO patent attorney, and holds a J.D. from Northwestern University.

Dean Harts is Vice President and Associate Chief IP Counsel at 3M, where he leads key intellectual property initiatives, including 3M’s Global Trade Secret Protection Program, which he has managed for about 14 years. He previously served as interim Chief Privacy Officer for 3M and later supported the company’s Data Protection, Privacy, and Cybersecurity legal function before fully returning to the IP group in 2025. He also led 3M’s International IP Operations, overseeing more than 50 IP professionals across 15 countries, after serving as Managing IP Counsel for several business groups. His IP experience spans patent, trade secret, and trademark strategy, agreements, enforcement, and counseling across multiple areas of the business.  Dean is Co-Chair of the IPO International Patent Law & Trade Committee and a member of The Sedona Conference Working Group on Trade Secrets. He holds a J.D. from Mitchell Hamline School of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota; a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology; and is CIPP/US certified.

Sanjeev Mahanta is a patent counsel at Merck. His role includes patent prosecution in pharmaceuticals, both small and large molecules, and providing IP support for due diligence and transactions related to business development. Prior to joining Merck, Sanjeev worked at U.S. law firms as a patent associate. Before starting his career in patent law, Sanjeev was a scientist. Sanjeev has a Ph.D. in biochemistry and carried out post-doctoral research work at Harvard University and NYU Medical Center.

Astrid Roe is the Legal & Policy Associate at the Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO), where she advocates for the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights in the U.S. and internationally. Astrid serves as Staff Liaison to the IPO International Patent Law & Trade Committee and helps organize IPO’s Special 301 comments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative each year. Astrid obtained her J.D. from St. John’s University School of Law in 2023 and is licensed to practice in New York and Washington, D.C.

Steve Akerley has litigated and tried patent cases for 30 years. From 1992 through 2019, Steve was in private practice, representing both patent owners and accused infringers in cases across the US, before the International Trade Commission, and before numerous international tribunals.  In 2020, Steve became the global head of litigation at InterDigital, a research and development company focused on wireless and video technologies. In 2021, Steve was also named head of intellectual property at InterDigital and now oversees strategy and management of the company’s large, global patent portfolio.

Tom Brown is the head of IP litigation at Dell. In that role, Tom manages litigation across the globe in all areas of IP, with a focus on patent litigation. Tom also supports non-litigation disputes and licensing. Tom also leads Dell's IP policy efforts, and is a frequent contributor at industry conferences and events. Tom also serves as co-chair of IPO\s Post-Grant Committee, and previously co-chaired its Litigation and Remedies Committee and its Trade Secrets Committee. He sits on the Board of Directors of the Alan D. Lourie Boston IP American Inn of Court, and previously served on the steering committee of the Sedona Conference Working Group 10 on Patent Litigation. Before joining Dell, Tom led IP litigation at EMC Corporation, and before that, he was a principal at Fish & Richardson. Before law school, Tom worked as a software design engineer for Microsoft.

Jorge L. Contreras is the James T. Jensen Endowed Professor for Transactional Law and Director of the Program on Intellectual Property and Technology Law at the University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law, and will serve as a Visiting Fellow at the London School of Economics and Political Science during 2023. Prior to entering academia, Professor Contreras was a partner at the international law firm Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP where he practiced intellectual property transactional law in Boston, Washington DC and London. Prof. Contreras’s academic research focuses on intellectual property, antitrust law, technical standardization and science policy. He has published more than 150 academic articles and book chapters and has written or edited twelve books including the 2-volume Cambridge Handbook of Technical Standardization Law (NY: Cambridge Univ. Press, 2017, 2019).  His scholarship has received numerous awards and recognition, including, most recently, the Patent & Trademark Office Society’s 2021 Rossman Memorial Award and the University of Utah’s 2020 Distinguished Research Award. Professor Contreras has appeared before the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, the Federal Trade Commission and the European Commission, and has served as an expert witness before courts across North America, South America and Europe.  His latest book, The Genome Defense: Inside the Epic Legal Battle to Determine Who Owns Your DNA, was recognized by the NY Times as one of the top eleven nonfiction books of Fall 2021 and selected as the Best Patent Law Book of the Year by the UK-based IPKat blog.  He is an elected member of the American Law Institute and the former co-chair of the National Conference of Lawyers and Scientists.  He received his JD from Harvard Law School, earned his BSEE and BA in English at Rice University and clerked for Chief Justice Thomas R. Philips of the Texas Supreme Court.

Karl Gross is involved in several areas of intellectual property with a particular emphasis in patent litigation and prosecution in the mechanical arts. He has successfully represented plaintiffs and defendants in district courts across the country and at the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals. He has also been involved in several post-issuance reexaminations and inter partes review proceedings before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and has successfully prosecuted numerous patents in the United States and aboard. Mr. Gross represents clients ranging from international corporations to individual inventors who are involved in a variety of technologies including internal combustion engines and automotive engineering, filters and filtration products, hydraulic systems, communications technologies and software, medical devices and electrical connectors and components. In addition to his litigation and prosecution work, Mr. Gross also renders opinions on intellectual property issues, advises on developing and managing intellectual property portfolios and strategy, conducts due diligence investigations, and negotiates licenses and other agreements.  Prior to attending law school, he worked as an industrial and design engineer with a corporation that designed and manufactured high vacuum pumps and compressors.

Brian Adams is Senior Patent Counsel at Qualcomm. For the past decade, he advised on open-source strategy and compliance for software supporting Wi-Fi, 4G/5G technology, XR, and the internet of things. For the past two years his practice now focuses on AI; where he advises on global AI policies and review procedures.  He previously served as chairman of the Open Source committee at IPO and now serves as co chairman of the IP licensing committee.

Natalie Prorok is an attorney who focuses her practice primarily on trademark and copyright law. Ms. Prorok received her JD from Northwestern Pritzker School of Law, where she served as Executive Editor for the Northwestern Journal of International Law and Business, a board member of the Northwestern Intellectual Property Law Society, and the President of the Northwestern Latinx Law Student Association. Before joining the firm, Ms. Prorok was selected to participate in the Northwestern-Kellogg School of Management’s San Francisco Immersion Program, where she took MBA and JD courses focused on counseling start-up and technology companies, and worked as an in-house legal intern for a large global fintech company at their headquarters in San Francisco.

Kate Scolaro is an associate at Leydig, Voit & Mayer whose practice focuses on trademark and copyright law, including trademark clearance, prosecution, disputes, and copyright protection and enforcement strategies. She also advises clients on related matters such as false advertising and e-commerce intellectual property issues. She draws on a background in complex litigation, having represented businesses and financial services providers in matters involving federal and state consumer protection laws, as well as appellate practice, bringing that perspective to contested trademark matters and enforcement strategy. Before entering private practice, Kate clerked for a state appellate judge. She received her J.D. from Northwestern University in 2022 and her B.A. in Linguistics and Political Science from the University of Florida.

Charlie Everitt is an IP professional with a track record of developing and leading IP/legal functions within global brands-focused businesses. He is results driven with a breadth of experience in implementing effective IP development, protection, enforcement and monetization strategies across a diverse range of industries; managing change within in-house IP/legal teams to align to business structure/strategic goals; implementing/refining IP processes and procedures, and driving integration of IP/legal functions within businesses; coaching/mentoring team members; driving revenue growth through IP licensing programs; cost effective management of internal and external resource; and wider commercial, governance and company director responsibilities. His specialties include trademarks and branding, designs, copyrights, patents and IP/commercial agreements.

Diane Gabl Kratz is a six-time IAM Strategy 300 World's Leading IP Strategist and 2024 ACC Global Top 10 30-Somethings awardee. A USPTO-registered patent attorney, she leads an 18-person global team, developing and executing patent filing strategies. She also heads Dolby’s worldwide trademark portfolio; WTR honored Dolby as 2025’s “Technology & Consumer Electronics Trademark Team of the Year.” Diane has guest lectured at Stanford, University of California-Berkeley’s Haas School of Business, and serves as PLI faculty. She has been quoted in Law360, American Lawyer, IAM, Managing IP, and WIPR and is a founding board member of CAIPA. Previously, Diane managed patent portfolios, IP transactions, and trademarks at a Fortune 500 tech company in Silicon Valley. A four-time Super Lawyers Rising Star, she began as an IP litigator at Morrison & Foerster and Sidley Austin in industries such as semiconductors, software, telecom, consumer electronics, and medical devices. She received her J.D. from the University of Chicago and Physics degree from Cornell University.

Andrew Levitt has a background in biotechnology research and has experience in many phases of United States and foreign intellectual property practice. As a patent associate, Mr. Levitt has experience drafting and prosecuting patent applications, and counseling clients regarding patentability, patent infringement, freedom-to-operate, and inventorship.

Dr. Antje Brambrink is qualified and admitted as an attorney at law in Germany. She advises and represents clients in complex patent disputes on all IP-related matters, often at the interface of antitrust and regulatory laws. Her expertise covers various fields of technology with a focus on pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, med-tech, as well as renewable energies and high-tech.

Dr. Shohta Ueno is a Senior Director Assistant General Counsel, Dispute Resolution at Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc., a leading biopharmaceutical company where he advises the company on a broad range of complex, multi-jurisdictional disputes. While Shohta deals with all matters relating to disputes, he focuses mostly on non-US IP matters and helps the company navigate through increasingly complex IP landscape.  Shohta joined Regeneron in 2018 from a leading IP litigation practice based in the UK. Shohta is also a trained scientist – he obtained a PhD in Virology as well as an undergraduate degree in Natural Sciences from the University of Cambridge.

Steph Melnychuk began her career as an IP lawyer at a boutique law firm in Vancouver, BC.  After nearly a decade in private practice, she transitioned to an in-house counsel role, working in fast-paced industries for several years. Like many high-achievers, she was praised for being capable, driven, and resilient. But behind the scenes, she was exhausted from constantly pushing herself, trying to meet impossible standards, and sacrificing her well-being in the name of success. Coaching helped Steph course-correct. First subtly, and eventually in ways that changed her life. Through her own healing and transformation, she discovered a different way to lead: one rooted in clarity, alignment, self-trust, and joy. Steph left law and founded her own coaching practice to help others feel more like themselves. Now, Steph helps people reconnect with what truly matters, align their ambition with their values, and lead lives that feel as good on the inside as they look on the outside. She also works with forward-thinking organizations to create space for sustainable success.

Ben Mahon is a Partner at McAndrews, where he focuses his practice on patent litigation, concentrating on the biological, chemical, and pharmaceutical arts. Ben has extensive experience in district court litigation, inter partes review proceedings before the USPTO, and appeals before the Federal Circuit and the United States Supreme Court. He has experience in all facets of litigation, including discovery, depositions, direct and cross-examination, oral argument, and legal writing. Ben has first-chair litigation experience, delivering several closing arguments, PTAB oral arguments, and arguing appeals in both the Federal Circuit and the Illinois First District Court of Appeals.

Tammy Pennington Rhodes currently serves as Principal at Supercharger.  She is a registered patent attorney with over 20 years of experience in patent litigation, drafting, and prosecution. She holds a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering and began her legal career at a general civil litigation firm in Atlanta, Georgia. Subsequently, she joined Baker Botts in Houston, where she litigated patents in areas such as telecommunications, high technology, personal consumer products, as well as sectors including oil and gas. Ms. Rhodes is an active member of the intellectual property community, having served as President of HIPLA and participated in various committees within IPO, AIPLA, and ABA. Currently, she serves as Revenue Officer for the ABA IPL Section and was recently appointed to the Board of Directors for TXIPA.

Hunter Yancey Jr.  practices intellectual property law focused on patent law while leveraging over two decades of experience. His current Qualcomm role is lead patent counsel for wireless connectivity and compute technologies. This dynamic role includes patent preparation and prosecution; legal support for advocacy, litigation, and licensing activities; providing counsel to business and technical leads on various patent matters; and partnering with IP team colleagues to develop and hone protection strategies for Qualcomm’s intellectual property. Prior to Qualcomm, his firm experience included an array of intellectual property matters at Troutman Sanders in Atlanta. Hunter holds a EE Bachelor’s Degree from Georgia Tech and a JD from UNH’s Franklin Pierce School of Law.

Paul Berghoff, founder of McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert Berghoff LLP, has three decades of experience as lead trial counsel in complex patent litigation – both jury and bench trials and PTAB proceedings – concentrating in litigation involving pharmaceuticals, medical devices, biotechnology, electronics, and software. He has successfully tried scores of patent cases and has successfully argued dozens of times before the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. He services as Chair of the firm’s Litigation & Appeals Practice Group. He is Vice-Chair of IPO’s Amicus Brief Committee.

Brian Horne is an experienced trial lawyer who litigates throughout the country for both plaintiffs and defendants. Mr. Horne’s cases involve a variety of industries, and he has won trials involving a wide range of disputes, including patent, trade secret, trademark, trade dress, and breach of contract. He is the Managing Partner of Knobbe's Los Angeles office.

Jason Liss’ practice focuses on intellectual property matters at the agency, trial and appellate levels. He has represented clients in patent disputes involving a wide variety of subject matter areas, including computer hardware, software and networking; semiconductor design and manufacture; wireless and cellular communication standards; medical devices; and pharmaceuticals. His practice encompasses all facets of litigation, including pre-suit investigations, pleadings, fact and expert discovery, alternative dispute resolution, trial and appeal. He has experience with district court trials before both bench and jury, Federal Circuit appeals, International Trade Commission investigations, and Patent Trial and Appeal Board inter partes review proceedings, and particularly extensive experience regarding patent infringement damages. Additionally, he has presented Continuing Legal Education and internal trainings on a variety of topics, including International Trade Commission investigations, fact and expert discovery in district court litigation, and patent infringement damages.

Lara Ameri is an associate in the intellectual property litigation group with a wide-ranging practice. Lara represents clients in patent, copyright, trademark, false advertising, trade secret, and contract disputes across a variety of fields, including wireless technology and telecommunications, e-commerce, software, retail, pharmaceuticals, and data storage. Lara has experience in district court litigation and international arbitration, from pre-suit analysis through trial preparation, including managing discovery, drafting pleadings and dispositive motions, defending expert witness depositions, assisting with damages assessments, and preparing witnesses for depositions and trial.

David Armendariz practices trademark and copyright law with a primary focus on litigation and policing. David represents clients in contentious matters before the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office and federal courts throughout the country. His experience includes four years with Vinson & Elkins LLP. Before entering private practice, David served as a law clerk to the Honorable Debra H. Lehrmann on the Supreme Court of Texas. David earned his J.D. with High Honors from The University of Texas School of Law, where he was a Chancellor. David also served as Articles Editor for the Texas Law Review and was a member of the Order of the Coif.

Jon Jekel is an attorney at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman where he advises artists, inventors, startups, and Fortune 500 companies on copyright, trademark, privacy, and other IP-related issues. In his free time, Jon enjoys collecting LPs, writing sci-fi, woodworking, traveling, and keeping up his Peloton streak.

Derek Abeyta is a patent attorney with considerable experience in preparing and prosecuting patent applications for clients, both in the United States and in foreign countries. Such patent applications relate to a variety of mechanical, electrical, and electromechanical fields, including telecommunications, extended reality systems, artificial intelligence and machine learning, camera processing, power electronics, video coding, aerospace systems, autonomous vehicles, and medical device arts. Prior to joining Harrity & Harrity, Derek practiced as a patent attorney at Quarles & Brady, LLP in Arizona. Previously, Derek worked as an IP associate for Shumaker & Sieffert, P.A. and Knobbe, Martens, Olson, & Bear, LLP. His law practice has focused on patent preparation and prosecution, as well as patent infringement and validity counseling.

Shruti Costales is the Owner & Founder at Shruti Law PLLC®. Shruti is a licensed US patent attorney and has worked in private practice, in-house, and with the Federal Government. She has 20+ years of deep legal experience in handling patent application drafting and prosecution, patent counseling, patent litigation, IP transactions, complex commercial transactions including drafting and negotiating XaaS agreements and handling FED/SLED agreements, supply chain agreements, product counseling, and due diligence and mergers& acquisitions related assessments. Her experience includes working in the electrical & computer technologies, mechanical technologies, chemicals/materials technologies, and life sciences/healthcare technologies. Shruti has a BS in Chemical Engineering from Purdue University and a JD from Franklin Pierce Law Center (now the University of New Hampshire School of Law).She is the Vice Chair of the Patent Pathways® Board of Directors. Shruti is currently one of the Vice-Chairs of IPO's Artificial Intelligence (AI),Data, and New Emerging Technologies Committee. Over the last decade, Shruti has co-led IPO's DEI and Women in IP committees where she co-authored many white papers, guides, and toolkits. Recently, Shruti co-authored the Data Use Agreement Template for IPO's AI/D/NET Committee.

Dave Easwaran is a partner and patent attorney at K&L Gates LLP.  He manages a team of patent attorneys, agents and technical specialists to support the IP objectives of a diverse client base.  In this capacity, he helps clients build patent portfolios that provide leverage to accomplish business goals, and he helps clients resolve contentious IP matters.  Having in the past held positions as a patent examiner at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and as an in-house attorney at a Fortune 50 company, Dave understands how to position patent applications for success and how to allocate limited IP spend in a cost-effective manner.  Beyond representing his clients, Dave is passionate about engaging with industry stakeholders and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to improve the U.S. patent system and ensure it promotes the development and deployment of new technology.

Priscilla Reyes is a patent agent with diversified experience in medical devices and oil and gas industries. She has expertise in chemistry, medical devices, control release technologies, and oil and gas technologies. Priscilla is known as a dependable, innovative, goal oriented team player/lead who possesses strong interpersonal and communication skills to achieve bottom line results. She is also fluent in Spanish.