Intellectual property is a key asset in any industry. Schwabe offers a full arsenal of offensive and defensive tactics for clients who seek to secure and exploit it.

Comprehensive IP services

We are one of the largest intellectual property practices in the Pacific Northwest, and one of the few firms in the region to offer patent prosecution, trademark prosecution, copyright prosecution, IP litigation, and IP transactional and licensing services.

Deep industry knowledge

Our strong industry focus helps us understand the competitive landscape and the important details that make our clients' innovations unique. Many of us worked in-house for years before coming to Schwabe, gaining a deep appreciation for business realities and goals.

• Handle domestic and international trademark clearance, enforcement and portfolio management for Benchmade Knife Company. Provide counsel on anti-counterfeiting, product endorsement and sponsorship agreements, and domestic and international distribution agreements.
• Assisted Coast Products in protecting designs, inventions and trademarks against competitors in the sporting goods (sporting knife and LED lighting) industry.
• Defended BowTech Archery in patent infringement litigation over a resilient coating and cam designs used on its bows.
• Worked with Warn Industries, Inc. to pursue infringers of the utility and design patents covering its hand-held pulling tool, the PullzAll, in China, Germany, Australia and the United States as well as through actions sent regarding infringements occurring on the Internet.
• Represented US Natural Resources (USNR) in suing ex-employees for patent infringement, trade secret misappropriation and breach of contract when those ex-employees started their own business and took advantage of confidential knowledge and trade secrets to steal customers. This matter was important to USNR as a way to communicate that it would enforce its patent portfolio and its rights against ex-employees in Canada and the United States in an industry where employees move regularly between competing companies.
• Brought Section 337 action at the International Trade Commission to enforce a major manufacturer and distributor of specialty gardening supplies' patent and trademark portfolio against a bevy of infringers that produced and sold knockoffs of its horticultural lighting products; action alleges patent infringement, trademark infringement and false advertising.
• Represent Columbia Sportswear Company in litigation against Seirus Innovative Accessories for infringement of two of Columbia’s utility patents and one design patent covering its innovative Omni-Heat® Reflective fabric, one of Columbia's signature technologies for its outerwear products.
• Represented Sierra Media in case challenging the definition of trade secrets under Oregon law when departing employee tried to take clients from former employer. 
• Represented a nuclear power technology company in its purchase of patent rights from a university, for a relatively large international patent portfolio that ‎we drafted and prosecuted. 
• Drive and implement corporate IP strategy for Blount International through regular discussion on new product ‎development and resulting IP, IP landscape analysis and navigation, litigation issue analysis, guidance and avoidance, partnering/development agreements, process improvement and other projects. 
• Guided RevMedx through the process to obtain its first patent on X-Stat (a device that can instantly plug up bullet wounds to prevent victims from bleeding out before medical help arrives), named an Invention of the Year by Popular Science. The work continues toward global protection for numerous products to be launched by RevMedx.
• Provide strategic counsel for DWFritz Automation on patent and trademark preparation/prosecution, commercial ‎contracts, and strategic guidance. We have been assisting in internally ‎developing and nurturing a startup venture with the intent to create a new spin-out entity.‎

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