This program was the first in a series of three virtual roundtables looking at intellectual property (IP) law and policy issues associated with non-fungible tokens (NFTs). It focused on patents and NFTs, providing panelists—including technologists, patent owners and practitioners, academics, and industry representatives—with an opportunity to share their knowledge and inform a joint study conducted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and the United States Copyright Office. This study continues the two offices’ ongoing work to explore emerging technologies and their implications for IP rights, and it responds to a request from the Senate Committee on the Judiciary’s Subcommittee on Intellectual Property.
Related roundtables were held on January 24, 2023, on trademarks and NFTs, and on January 31, 2023, on copyright and NFTs (view agenda [PDF]).
A recording and transcript of this event are now available. To learn more about the other programs in this series, visit the USPTO website.
Agenda
Agenda subject to change
10:00 - 10:10 Opening remarks
- Kathi Vidal, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office
10:10 - 12:10 IP practitioners
- Nelson M. Rosario, Rosaria Tech Law LLC
- Joseph Wolfe, DLA Piper
- Giovanna Fessenden, Hamilton, Brook, Smith & Reynolds, P.C.
- Mark Stignani, Barnes and Thornburg LLP
- David Hardoon, Wang Hardoon P.C.
- Ryan Chowdhury, Fish & Richardson P.C.
- Michael Kasdan, Wiggin and Dana LLP
- Dov Greenbaum, Yale University; Reichman University (IDC) Herzliya
- Mikal-Ellen S. Bennett, Kindcaid and Associates, PLLC
- Kristopher Kastens, Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP
- Mauricio Uribe, Knobbe Martens
- Joel Bock, Dentons US LLP
12:10 - 12:30 Break
12:30 - 2:30 Industry representatives
- Dorothy Haraminac, GreenVets LLC
- Leann Pinto, IPwe, Inc.
- Robert Mowry, Rekttech
- Kary Oberbrunner, Igniting Souls Publishing Agency
- Cleve Mesidor, The Blockchain Foundation
- Lucinda Lewis, Car Culture, Inc.
- Patricia MacKenzie, Independent Creator
- Merav Ozair, Wake Forest University, Emerging Technologies Mastery
- Ram Shanmugam, Heera Digital
- Pamela Norton, TitleChain
Additional information
For more information about this program, contact Lakeshia Harley in the USPTO’s Office of Policy and International Affairs.
For additional information about the joint USPTO-Copyright Office study on IP law and policy issues associated with NFTs, including the Federal Register Notice of November 23, 2022, seeking public comment on a range of IP issues and topics associated with NFTs, visit the USPTO website.
This virtual program is hosted by the USPTO’s Office of Policy and International Affairs (OPIA). The office advises the administration and other federal government departments and agencies on domestic and international IP legal and policy issues. It also provides technical assistance and training on IP-related matters to U.S. stakeholders and both U.S. and foreign government officials.
Accessibility accommodation
If you are an individual with a disability and would like to request a reasonable accommodation, please submit your request to the contact information listed above.