News
Womble Carlyle attorneys Christopher Bolen, Mary Bourke, Tom Cawley, Chris Humphrey, Lou Isaf, Bill Ragland, Andy Spence and Jim Vaughan have been named to Intellectual Asset Management magazine’s IAM Patent 1000: The World’s Leading Patent Practitioners for 2017.
In addition, the IAM Patent 1000 report recognizes Womble Carlyle as a top firm for patent law in Georgia and North Carolina.
The IAM Patent 1000 is an annual guide to the leading patent practitioners in 50 jurisdictions around the globe. Researchers spent five months interviewing patent attorneys and the buyers of their legal services to determine the IAM Patent 1000 for 2017. Ranked attorneys do not pay to be listed in the IAM Patent 1000.
Christopher Bolen has over 30 years of experience in intellectual property matters and is the immediate past Co-chair of Womble Carlyle’s Intellectual Property Practice Group. Bolen regularly advises technology- and knowledge-based companies on developing and implementing intellectual property protection and commercialization strategies. Bolen’s principal areas of practice include complex technology licensing and IP-related transactions in the chemical, biotechnology and manufacturing industries, as well as trademarks and copyrights. He regularly advises clients on all aspects of the development, protection and commercialization of technology and brands in traditional and electronic distribution channels.
Mary Bourke is a patent litigator in Womble Carlyle’s Wilmington office. For almost 30 years, Bourke has practiced in Delaware and, during that time, she has litigated numerous cases in front of the judges and magistrate judges in the District. Bourke’s practice has particularly focused on litigating patents involving the life sciences.
Tom Cawley’s practice focuses on biotechnology patent prosecution, opinion work, and client counseling, including the design and implementation of global intellectual property strategies. Dr. Cawley has experience in a wide range of technologies, including gene therapy, transgenic animals, genomics, recombinant herpes simplex viruses, recombinant production of procaryotic and eucaryotic gene products, small molecule technologies, antibody technologies, novel adjuvant therapies, screening methods for the identification of novel drug candidates, cancer therapy, and methods and compositions for the treatment of a variety of neurological conditions.
Chris Humphrey concentrates on patent prosecution, particularly domestic and foreign prosecution of mechanical, chemical and biotechnology patents, with an emphasis on life science related technologies. Humphrey also provides counseling on all aspects of intellectual property, including patent infringement and validity.
Lou Isaf provides strategic advice relating to all aspects of intellectual property development, procurement, market protection and commercialization. His patent strengths include conducting complex patent portfolio analysis, patent conflict analysis and resolution, and developing strategies both domestically and internationally in the areas of patent procurement and market protection. In addition, Isaf counsels clients in trademark and copyright matters, and provides IP support to M&A transactions. His experience in mechanical and electro-mechanical technologies, software, telecommunications, and internet has enabled Isaf to serve as a valuable resource to start-up companies and to well-established “high-tech” firms and universities.
Bill Ragland is among Womble Carlyle’s most experienced lead litigators and trial lawyers, with particular experience in patent and intellectual property litigation. He has litigated more than 60 patent infringement and other patent-related cases in his 30-year career. Ragland also provides strategic advice regarding the structure, negotiation and implementation of intellectual property enforcement and licensing programs and portfolio management services. Intellectual Asset Management has also named him as one of the top 300 intellectual property strategists in the world for 2016 and 2017. Ragland founded the Atlanta Bar Association’s Intellectual Property Section and served as its first co-chair, is a past president of the Atlanta Bar Association, and currently serves on the Board of Governors of the State Bar of Georgia.
Andy Spence concentrates his practice on patent procurement in the electrical, computer software and business method arts. Spence has significant experience handling complex patent matters for companies in various fields covering a number of diverse technologies, including telecommunications, aerospace and e-commerce.
Jim Vaughan has litigated patent cases since 1983, serving as lead counsel in trials, appeals and in specialty proceedings before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Vaughan is the immediate past leader of Womble Carlyle’s Patent and Patent Litigation teams. He concentrates the majority of his practice on working with the business and legal teams of the firm’s major corporate clients, developing business/legal strategies involving patents and patent litigation. His focus is on achieving positive business results that are based upon patent acquisition or litigation, as required. He also continues his interference, reissue, reexamination and patent appellate practices before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
