Intellectual Property Law Conference Draws Wide Audience with International Focus

A two-day Conference on Intellectual Property Law at the Center for American and International Law in Plano, Texas this week featured a wide variety of panels with experts in patent, trademark and copyright law. The conference attracted more than 200 registrants and faculty from throughout the United States and abroad.

“We are extremely pleased to see the growth of the IP Law Conference, now in its 56th year, with a broad audience, not just from Texas and surrounding states including Oklahoma, but also from California, Washington, D.C., Canada, Germany, and China,” said Christa Sanford, co-chair of the conference who is the Deputy Chair of the Intellectual Property Department of Baker Botts, an international law firm based in Houston, Texas.

“Our conference featured many aspects of international IP law, including panels discussing the implications and benefits of litigating in international courts and analyzing the U.S. IP ranking as compared to the rest of the world.” As a result, Sanford said, the conference is taking on more of a global focus that mirrors the growing international practice of intellectual property law.

Brian Gaffney, conference co-chair and Assistant Vice President and Senior Legal Counsel for IP Litigation at AT&T, was particularly pleased with the attendance and the quality of the program.

“We had excellent faculty who discussed relevant issues faced by attorneys in the field as well as recent legal cases that have wide-ranging implications for practitioners.  In addition to our traditional updates on patents, copyrights, trademarks and trade secrets, we discussed topics relating to the impact of a shifting IP policy on business and innovation, protecting emerging technologies, licensing for the Internet of Things, the use of logos and images in creative works, and the effect of international court rulings on FRAND (Fair, Reasonable and Non-Discriminatory) determinations,” said Gaffney.

Larry Bassuk, Senior Patent Counsel at Texas Instruments, has recommended the event to his colleagues for the past 30 years. “It’s a one-of-a-kind conference in North Texas. It brings together law and technology, business and legal people from major markets of the world with quality presentations and insights. It’s a cost-effective way to expand knowledge and meet our CLE requirements as well.”

The Center for American and International Law (CAIL) is a nonprofit institution dedicated to improving the quality of justice through the education of lawyers and law enforcement officials in the United States and throughout the world. The Intellectual Property Law Conference was hosted by CAIL’s Institute for Law and Technology.


Photo Caption: IP Law Conference Co-Chairs Christa Sanford (Deputy Department Chair - Intellectual Property, Partner, Baker Botts L.L.P.) and Brian J. Gaffney (Assistant Vice President, Sr. Legal Counsel - IP Litigation, AT&T Services, Inc.)