Akerman LLP, a top 100 U.S. law firm, is pleased to announce the expansion of its Intellectual Property Practice Group with the addition of Jeffrey Armstrong and Benjamin Urban in Chicago. Armstrong and Urban bring with them a broad range of experience in intellectual property law, including patents, trademarks, unfair competition, copyrights, and trade secrets. The pair arrive from McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff LLP.
“Jeff and Ben are great additions to the firm. They add significant expertise and depth, further strengthening our ability to advise clients regarding IP strategies and help with a range of issues,” said Intellectual Property Practice Group Chair Brian Bianco. “Jeff and Ben have built an impressive practice representing innovators in the electrical, software and telecommunications industries. Their business and technical experience across these fields, combined with their expertise in patent litigation, counseling, and prosecution, enhance the level of service that we can provide to clients.”
Armstrong has litigated patent infringement and trade secret matters in federal district courts, authored briefs in patent matters at the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the United States Supreme Court, prepared and prosecuted patent applications in the United States Patent and Trademark Office and patent offices around the world, and represented clients in post-grant proceedings at the Patent Trial and Appeals Board. In addition to his prosecution and litigation practice, has also authored legal opinions regarding patent, trademark, trade secret, unfair competition, and copyright issues, assisted clients with licensing patents and patent portfolios, and represented clients in trademark oppositions at the Trademark Trial and Appeals Board.
Urban focuses his practice on patent prosecution before the USPTO as well as patent offices worldwide. He has extensive experience in consumer electronics and software technologies having successfully prosecuted over 500 patent applications to issuance in these areas. Through these efforts, he has helped a leading consumer electronics manufacturer build its patent portfolio more than tenfold. He also has significant experience in telecommunications, web-conferencing, robotics, and online gaming, among other technologies.
