Speaker Bios

Mr. Crooker is Patent Attorney for Schneider Electric, a Fortune Global 500 company, and leader in energy management and automation with operations in more than 100 countries.  At Schneider Electric, Mr. Crooker manages and develops patent portfolios for a number of business units within the company, including the company’s Digital Power, Solar, and Industry businesses.  Mr. Crooker drafts and files patent applications; coordinates international extension filings; reviews office actions and drafts responses based on feedback from the business units; and communicates with outside attorneys.  Mr. Crooker also trains and assists technologists in recognizing patentable inventions and submitting invention disclosures; prepares freedom-to-operate/clearance studies regarding third-party patent rights; participates in design review meetings, brainstorming sessions and innovation workshops; and leads invention identification sessions within selected projects.  Additionally, Mr. Crooker oversees and is involved in the invention disclosure submission and evaluation processes, and provides other assistance and support to research and development, marketing, and legal department staff as required, including on merger and acquisition and litigation matters.

Prior to working for Schneider Electric, Mr. Crooker worked for Daly, Crowley, Mofford & Durkee, LLP. as a Patent Attorney, and held numerous positions for technology companies around the Boston area with a particular focus on hardware and software testing.  Mr. Crooker has a B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering from Boston University, and a J.D. with a concentration in Intellectual Property law from New England Law | Boston. 

Jeffrey Sears is Associate General Counsel and Chief Patent Counsel for Columbia University.  His practice encompasses all aspects of patent law, including prosecution, strategic counseling, licensing and post-licensing compliance, litigation, and legislative, regulatory, and policy matters.  He manages the university’s global patent portfolio and works closely with faculty inventors, technology transfer officers, and executive leadership on commercialization activities.  Also, Jeff is an Adjunct Professor at Columbia’s School of Engineering and Applied Science, where he co-teaches Intellectual Property for Entrepreneurs and Managers.  Additionally, Jeff is a member of the Patent Public Advisory Committee of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), to which he was appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce.  He has been recognized for his work in intellectual property law and management and has multiple awards and honors, including having been named to the IAM Strategy 300 by IAM Media and Corporate IP Stars by Managing Intellectual Property Magazine. Jeff holds an S.B. in physics from MIT, an M.A. and Ph.D. in physics from SUNY Stony Brook, and a J.D. from NYU. He is admitted to practice law in New York and before the USPTO.

Weiying Yang is the Assistant General Counsel at Purdue Pharma L.P. She's had experience as a Patent counsel and strategist, Attorney-at-law admitted in NJ, MA and PA (inactive), and Authorized CT House Counsel.

Weiyings practice is devoted to Intellectual Property matters, including IP strategies, business IP due diligence, US and worldwide patent prosecution, patent litigation support, USPTO post-grant proceedings, patent portfolio overseeing and management, and trademark/copyright-related matters. 

Additionally, she acquired her Law Degree from Rutger Law School.

Anne Davis Barry has 17 years’ experience in patent preparation and prosecution, opinions, counseling, and landscaping; her practice is focused on computer technology, including computer infrastructures such as computer hardware, databases, networks and operating systems, as well as business methods and control systems. Anne is responsible for securing patent protection to meet client product launch deadlines; for partnering with clients on site in patent mining sessions to form patent protection strategies; for working directly with inventors; and for management of final work product of associates. Before becoming a patent attorney, Anne spent 15 years with IBM, first as a programmer, then a systems engineer, and lastly a project manager. She has been an adjunct professor of patent law at the University of Connecticut School of Law since 2002.

Steven Weiner has nearly 30 years of experience helping clients make high-stakes decisions that require deep insight into IP law, technology, and business strategy. Steven currently serves as a Renowned Intellectual Property Fellow at SRI International – a world-leading, non-profit R&D institute. He is also a lecturer at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, where he created and teaches a popular MBA course on IP Strategy.

Steven was a partner for over 8 years with Davis Polk, a preeminent global law firm, where he led and grew the firm’s Corporate Intellectual Property practice.

Steven is a graduate of Harvard Law School (J.D., cum laude), MIT (S.M., Computer Science & Electrical Engineering) and University of Pennsylvania (B.S.E., Systems Science & Engineering, summa cum laude). Steven co-invented five United States patents in the field of artificial intelligence, and he was named to the inaugural list of the world’s leading IP strategists by IAM 250 – A Guide to the World’s Leading IP Strategists.

Steven is admitted to practice law in the State of California and is a registered United States Patent Attorney.

Elizabeth Pietrowski is Associate General Counsel at Phibro Animal Health Corporation, an animal health and nutrition company.  Elizabeth handles all intellectual property matters for Phibro, ranging from strategic licensing negotiations to trademark procurement.   Elizabeth also provides counsel on general legal matters to Phibro’s companion animal division.

Elizabeth joined Phibro in February 2019 from Catalent Pharma Solutions, where she served as Catalent’s Assistant General Counsel, Director of Intellectual Property.  Prior to joining Catalent, Elizabeth was Associate General Counsel at BASF Corporation, leading IP support for BASF’s catalyst group.  Elizabeth’s legal practice foundation was developed through her law firm experience, as Counsel in Lowenstein Sandler’s Tech Group, and as an Associate at a New York IP Boutique, Davidson, Davidson & Kappel.

Elizabeth earned her law degree from Seton Hall University, and has a Bachelor’s of Science in Pharmacy from Rutgers University College of Pharmacy.

Dania Nasser is the Senior Associate General Counsel at Canon Business Process Services. Prior to working in this role she was the Business Operations and Compliance Counsel at Ralph Lauren. Dania acquired her law degree from Yale University.

Liza L. Wolf is an innovative, accomplished and business-oriented General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer with over 20 years’ in-house counsel and large corporate law firm experience.  Liza is currently General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Catapult Learning, a special education services company with over 6,500 employees nationwide.  As a member of the leadership team, she serves as the company’s chief legal advisor, providing guidance on acquisitions, intellectual property matters, new initiatives and major transactions.  Additionally, Liza manages all company litigation and partners with Human Resources on employee-related matters.  In her capacity as Chief Compliance Officer, Liza handles internal investigations and created and manages the company’s compliance programs.  Prior to joining Catapult Learning, Liza was Chief Legal Officer at Blue Sky Power and a partner at the law firm,  Cozen O’Connor.

Rosaleen is a skilled attorney with in-house and law firm experience, handeling all aspects of sophisticated intellectual property and commercial law, including contracts, patent and trademark prosecution, and litigation. She has excellent technical capabilities combined with management skills focused on careful attention to detail and communication with clients ensures that their objectives are met and their projects are completed within time and budget constraints.

Prior to Drager, Rosaleen held the Senior IP Counsel position at Air Products, the Associate Attorney position at Woodcock Washburn and various trademark and prosecution responsibilities at Campbell Soup Company. She earned her Engineering Degree from Rutgers University, her M.B.A from San Jose State University and her J.D. from Rutgers Law School.

Sheila Jain Kaushik is Senior Counsel, Intellectual Property at Ansell where she has broad responsibility and management over the company's global IP portfolio (trademarks, patents, and trade secrets), in addition to supporting IP-related commercial activities (M&A, licensing transactions, joint development agreements). Prior to going in-house, Sheila worked in private practice at law firms in New York, New Jersey, and Austin, Texas, where her practice focused on general commercial/civil and patent litigation. Sheila graduated from Rutgers Law School - Newark in 2009, and received her undergraduate (Chemistry/World Arts & Cultures) and graduate degree (Public Health) from UCLA. Prior to being an attorney, Sheila was a public health epidemiologist and researcher with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.

David Shofi is an attorney with extensive experience in many aspects of technology, innovation and intellectual property.  He is presently General Counsel for Univercells Technologies, a biomanufacturing equipment company in Belgium recently acquired by the Donaldson Company and acts as IP Counsel for several other life sciences companies. David also served as Vice President, IP Strategy Solutions and Chief IP Counsel for CPA Global where he helped clients assess and identify opportunities for improvement and efficiency implementation in their IP lifecycle processes.  Before joining CPA Global, David held the role of Chief Intellectual Property Counsel for ATMI, an international semiconductor and lifesciences corporation and IP Counsel for IBM.  He began his legal career as an associate at the firm of Baker Botts.  David has broad experience in IP and general corporate law including IP/technology licensing and transactions, due diligence, IP Strategy, portfolio development and monetization. David earned his law degree from Pace University School of Law and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Columbia University. 

Philip is a Director and Senior IP Counsel at Boehringer Ingelheim USA Corporation located in Ridgefield, Connecticut.  In his 15 years as IP counsel for Boehringer, Phil has drafted and prosecuted patent applications and strategically managed patent portfolios in a number of therapeutic areas; conducted patentability and freedom to operate assessments; supported NDA filings with regulatory exclusivity requests and patent information; performed IP due diligence reviews in connection with in-licensing of early to late stage products; negotiated IP provisions in various types of agreements; assisted in developing best practices for IP protection and for the negotiation of IP provisions in agreements; and has counseled on US export compliance issues and the development of related internal policies and procedures.  Prior to joining Boehringer, Phil was an associate attorney at the Sughrue, Mion law firm in Washington, D.C., and prior to his tenure at Sughrue, Phil was a patent examiner at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.  Phil has a Bachelor of Science in organic chemistry from the University of Maryland, and a law degree from the George Mason University School of Law and is a regular speaker on various IP, patent and export compliance topics.

Ted Mathias focuses on trying patent cases. In the last several years, he has tried three cases to judgment and served as lead counsel in multiple cases involving 15+ patents. Ted has litigated patent cases and handled successful appeals to the Federal Circuit in the areas of medical devices, pharmaceuticals, mechanical devices, e-commerce and software. Clients frequently turn to him for guidance on patent remedies and competition issues that arise in connection with patent disputes.

Azatuhi Ayrikyan is a patent strategy manager in the New Ventures division of Research and Development at Schott AG, a multinational high-tech glass manufacturor based in Mainz, Germany. She has been at Schott since December 2018, where she is responsible for patent portfolio development in high priority RD projects in the US and Germany, as well as strategic initiatives in patent intelligence based in RD. Prior to her role at Schott, she worked in high-tech consulting and scouting with  as a project manager at Prescouter, a Chicago based startup, as well as Foresight Science and Technologies, based in Providence, as a commercialization analyst.

She has a PhD in Materials Science and Engineering from the Technical University of Darmstadt, a Masters in Materials Science and Engineering from Boston University, and a Bachelors in Biological Sciences from Columbia University.

Brian oversees Avon’s global patent strategy and serves as the primary counsel for Avon’s Global Innovation Center. Brian advises Avon’s R&D executives and scientists on broad range of legal areas, including IP, licensing and other contractual matters, and ethics and compliance, and he works with Avon’s Global Legal Organization on complex transactional, IP litigation, and tax matters. 

Brian began his career at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, LLP, where he developed a decade of experience in patent and complex commercial litigation on behalf of major consumer electronics companies and financial institutions, as well as IP transactions on behalf of private equity firms strategic acquirers and lenders. Prior to joining Avon, Brian was Of Counsel with Greenberg Traurig, LLP, where he expanded his practice to include patent prosecution, licensing, and trademark matters.

Brian holds a JD from New York University School of Law and an AB in Biological Sciences from Cornell University. He is admitted to practice in New York and is a Registered Patent Attorney.

Intellectual Property pattern and co-chair Jonathan S. Caplan represents clients in patent litigation, counseling and prosecution, as well as in general corporate matters involving the acquisition, sale or licensing of intellectual property rights.

Jonathan litigates patent infringement actions in federal district courts across the country, in the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and in state courts, both representing patent owners seeking to enforce their rights and defending companies against allegations of infringement.

Joe is the Assistant General Counsel for Litigation and Intellectual Property at Mitsubishi Chemical America, Inc. where he advises clients about handling disputes and litigation, compliance, and intellectual property. Before joining Mitsubishi Chemical, Joe was a Senior Associate in Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP's Intellectual Property Group where he focused his practice on patent and trademark litigation. Joe is a 2006 graduate of the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law and a 2000 graduate of Columbia College where he graduated with a degree in Biochemistry. He lives in New York with his wife, daughter, and son.

WILLIAM COPPOLA is Intellectual Property Counsel for Aerie Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and oversees all of Aerie  Pharmaceuticals’ intellectual property matters both domestically and internationally.   He has over 25 years of experience representing numerous clients, including universities, regarding a wide spectrum of patent and intellectual property matters, including securing and defending world-wide patent protection, performance of due diligence with respect to new technologies, licensing and negotiation of agreements, performance of competitive and freedom-to-operate analyses, and patent litigation in the US and globally. Mr. Coppola’s litigation responsibilities have included management of numerous Hatch-Waxman litigations, ITC litigation, and PMNOC litigation in Canada. Mr. Coppola received his J.D. from Seton Hall University Law School in 1991, where he was a member of the Seton Hall Constitutional Law Journal. He received his graduate degree in Biochemistry from the University of South Florida in Tampa, Florida, and his undergraduate degree in Chemistry from the University of Delaware. He is a member of the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society, a registered patent attorney, and is admitted to practice law in New Jersey, Florida, New York and the District of Columbia.

Ralph Gabric is a trial lawyer with more than 30 years of experience handling patent matters, serving as lead counsel in numerous cases around the country including in the Northern District of Illinois, the District of Delaware, the Northern and Central Districts of California, the Eastern District of Texas and the District of New Jersey. He has successfully represented clients in both jury and bench trials, and appeals to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, as well as in post-grant review proceedings before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, appearing as lead counsel in more than 20 inter partes review proceedings. Intellectual Asset Management (IAM) magazine, Globe Business Media Group, 2017 writes that Ralph is “incredibly client-oriented” and “an awesome orator who instantly connects with juries.”

Ralph has extensive experience handling matters involving a variety of technologies, including software, medical devices, communications networks, cellular telephony, automotive, infrared cameras, and various internet-based technologies. Ralph also has substantial experience in Hatch-Waxman pharmaceutical litigation, serving as lead counsel in cases involving numerous drug products.

Regina counsels clients on their most complex intellectual property issues in both transactional and operational settings. She advises private and public companies on technology transactions, including strategic acquisitions, private equity investments, licensing, and other commercial agreements. She is an experienced legal strategist who has helped clients grow, commercialize, and design around significant IP assets. Amongst her clients, including startups and mature companies, Regina is known for practical and effective advice that is rooted in their business needs.

A dual-qualified U.S. lawyer and Solicitor of England and Wales, Regina also represents clients in European patent oppositions and other post-grant proceedings. She is the author of The EU's Unitary Patent and Unified Patent Court: A reference guide to the core legislation, regulations and rules of procedure, and speaks and writes regularly about global IP strategies for U.S. companies.

Regina has undergraduate and graduate degrees in electrical engineering from MIT, and previously worked in the telecommunications and software industries. She has deep experience across a range of technologies, including blockchain, artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, semiconductor, financial technology (fintech), and medical technologies.

Kevin Angle is counsel in the privacy & cybersecurity group, based in Ropes & Gray’s Boston office. He represents a broad range of companies on privacy and cybersecurity matters, guiding clients through the existing patchwork of U.S. federal and state laws as well as the European Union’s comprehensive General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other international privacy and cybersecurity laws. In that context, Kevin advises clients on privacy and cybersecurity matters arising in corporate transactions. He also assists clients in responding to data breach incidents, helping clients in assessing their legal obligations following a breach and in responding to regulatory authorities and others.

Kevin advises clients in instituting comprehensive privacy and cybersecurity compliance programs. Kevin represents U.S.-based clients in understanding their obligations and meeting the requirements of the GDPR as well as the California Consumer Privacy Act. He also regularly assists clients in complying with marketing privacy laws such as the U.S. CAN-SPAM and Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA).

A Certified Information Privacy Professional, Kevin leverages his prior experience in litigation to provide clients with risk-conscious advice. Kevin helps clients to anticipate and address potential areas of legal exposure and to structure breach responses and privacy programs to minimize potential liability.

Allen White currently serves as Chief IP Counsel for the North American affiliates of the Air Liquide group. He manages a department of 12 full time and 2 contract employees, including 6 attorneys. Allen worked as a patent engineer, prior to admission to the Texas bar in 2001, and as an IP specialist attorney since. Allen's experience includes extensive M&A duedil work, both technology centric and business centric. As part of his responsibilities, Allen drafts and negotiates numerous IP and technology driven agreements from NDAs to JDAs to Commercial Exploitation rights. Allen has also performed numerous FTO's and managed the follow on identified IP risks through opinions, design around counsel, invalidation actions, and licensure procurement. Allen still drafts and prosecutes patent applications, mainly related to the healthcare and life sciences/biotech segment of Air Liquide's diverse business portfolio. Prior to working at Air Liquide, Allen was an associate at Fulbright & Jaworski LLP (now Norton Rose Fulbright). Allen is licensed in Texas and registered with the USPTO.

Joseph Codispoti is a seasoned patent attorney with a long and demonstrated history of high performance and achievement as an attorney and a law firm director. He has worked in-house, at large law firms, and operated two small law practices. He is equally adept at working directly with individuals and collaboratively as a team member across different jurisdictions and multiple companies. 

Roger H. Lee focuses his practice on intellectual property law, with an emphasis on inter partes matters before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. He has extensive experience before the PTAB and has successfully represented petitioners and patent owners in inter partes review (IPR) proceedings.

Roger provides strategic counseling and opinions concerning validity, infringement, and freedom to operate. He helps clients navigate complex disputes involving multiple patents and parallel proceedings. He has conducted appeals before the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Roger has extensive experience preparing and prosecuting patent applications and managing patent portfolios. He is experienced in all phases of patent prosecution, from drafting applications to conducting appeals. He has obtained numerous patents for clients in the chemical, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, mechanical, and electrical fields.

Edward is Vice President and Senior Counsel for Intellectual Property at MasterCard. He has over a decade of legal experience. Prior to MasterCard Edward held associate positions at bother Baker Botts LLP and Petterson Belknap Web & Tyler LLP. Edward earned his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University and his J.D. from Cornell Law School.

Elaine is Legal and Compliance at Nokia. She has decades of experience working with world class scientists, inventors, and leading intellectual property professionals across the ecosystem of technology law and policy

Companies and individuals work hard to create business opportunities to build on a successful business. Understanding this, Ross helps them protect their business and realize the gains of their efforts by developing the proper IP strategy. “It’s important to understand the goals of each business, and focus the business’ IP strategy in a direction that helps meet those goals,” Ross says. “When I’m advising larger financial services or medical device clients, I have a different approach than, say, smaller tech startups.”

In successfully prosecuting utility patent applications, design patent applications, and trademark applications for his clients, Ross has gained valuable experience in both foreign and domestic prosecution. After the patents or trademarks have been obtained, Ross also works with clients to develop the proper licensing or litigation strategy for protecting their rights.  In fact, Ross has spent nearly 10 years supporting litigation and licensing efforts.

Ross has valuable experience formulating and executing post-grant strategy on behalf of his clients as well.  “Due to your limited opportunity to convince an adverse party of your position, whether it be an Examiner in a reexam or a company in litigation, going in with the proper strategy is 90% of the battle,” Ross reminds his clients.  “Preparing the proper initial strategy for success to drive the variables toward improving your position in litigation or licensing discussions is always fact intensive.  You have to spend the right amount of time upfront.”

Ross understands the technological, legal, and business aspects of inventions that leverage electrical and computer systems.  For example, he is familiar with computer hardware and software, mobile devices (e.g., apps, cell phones, tablets, etc.),  medical devices, wired and wireless networking systems (e.g., Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, Zigbee, etc.), telecommunications systems, load control systems, and manufacturing systems.  Having been exposed to a substantial breadth of industries, including financial services, software development, home automation, medical device, and telecommunications, Ross has the ability to tailor strategies to specific market segments.

Prior to practicing law, Ross worked as a software developer and technical support expert to learn the ins and outs of the technology he helps protect today. While in law school, Ross was an Executive Editor of the Syracuse Law Review and Associate Editor of the Syracuse Science and Technology Law Reporter.

Anne Shea Gaza has been successfully litigating intellectual property and complex commercial cases for almost two decades. With meticulous attention to detail and big-picture strategic vision, Ms. Gaza represents national and international clients in Delaware’s state and federal courts. She has represented both plaintiffs and defendants in a diverse range of industries and technologies.

Ms. Gaza also advises clients on the various e-discovery standards and practices across the courts. She has developed an in-depth understanding of electronic discovery and served on the United States District Court for the District of Delaware’s Ad Hoc Committee on E-Discovery (responsible for drafting the Court’s Default Standard for Discover. Including Discovery of Electronically Stored Information).

In 2014, she was appointed by the Delaware Supreme Court to its Commission on Law & Technology and is a member of the Technology Inn of Court. In addition to serving as an advocate for her clients in the courtroom, Ms. Gaza has extensive experience with alternative dispute resolution, particularly court-directed and private mediation. She also serves as a neutral arbitrator in both intellectual property and complex commercial matters. She serves as an appointed arbitrator through the American Arbitration Association (AAA).

An accomplished author, Ms. Gaza is also a member of the editorial board for the Federal Bar Association’s magazine The Federal Lawyer. She is also a frequent speaker with federal and state court judges and local practitioners on industry-related topics as well as ethics and professionalism. Ms. Gaza is a member of the Board of Bar Examiners for the State of Delaware and serves as co-chair of the firm’s Diversity Committee. With an AV-Preeminent peer review rating from Martindale-Hubbell, she was selected as a 2014 Women Leaders in the Law and profiled in a special section of Fortune magazine.

While in law school, Ms. Gaza served on the Journal of Law & Commerce. She also served as a judicial extern for the Honorable Carol Los Mansmann, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.

Christopher Carroll is an Intellectual Property partner based in the Firm's Boston office, with a dual practice in London. He concentrates his practice on providing strategic patent advocacy and is licensed to practice before the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), the European Patent Office (EPO) and the UK High Court. He provides advice and develops strategies for clients on patents, trademarks and copyrights.

Christopher's engineering background enables him to focus on the areas of mechanical, electrical, software and communications engineering including wireless protocols, Internet protocols and information security. His clients include software, telecommunications, medical and Internet companies.

Christopher's experience involves drafting and prosecuting U.S. and foreign patent applications and advising on patent portfolios for clients located all over the world. He regularly prepares legal opinions regarding patent validity, infringement and freedom-to-operate, provided due diligence opinions related to intellectual property, and drafted technology-related license agreements. He also has extensive experience handling Opposition and Appeal proceedings at the European Patent Office.

Prior to joining White & Case, Christopher was Counsel at an international law firm. In his earlier career prior to attending law school, Christopher supervised research related to wireless communications network security at Verizon and GTE Laboratories. He also developed Mobile IP cryptographic key distribution procedure used by Verizon Wireless in its 3G data service. His background also encompasses service in the U.S. Navy Submarine Force as a nuclear reactor operator. Christopher is an inventor of eight U.S. patents related to wireless security.

Dan Bikus is Dennemeyer’s Central Region Business Development Manager. Dan has 12+ years’ experience consulting with AmLaw 250 and Fortune 500 legal departments. Dan is a seasoned intellectual property strategist. In his current role, Dan coaches corporate IP legal departments on how to maximize the value of their patent/trademark portfolios, while minimizing any unnecessary spend through Dennemeyer’s suite of services. Dan is a member of the IPO, AIPLA, and INTA. Dan has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics from Illinois State University.