LEAP Practitioner Recognition

The Legal Experience and Advancement Program (LEAP) is designed to help develop the next generation of patent practitioners by enabling them to secure oral advocacy opportunities before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. Development of legal skills through practical experience allows advocates to effectively support and represent their clients’ interests.

This webpage recognizes the legal practitioners who participated in the LEAP program during its first two years, from May 2020 to May 2022. Participants are listed in alphabetical order by first name.

Learn about what some participants are saying about the program.

Recipients A-G

Recipient Name	Law Firm/Company	City & State
Adam Doane	Alston & Bird, LLP	Charlotte, NC
Akkad Y. Moussa	Kilpatrick, Townsend & Stockton, LLP	Washington, DC
Alexander R. Covington	Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox, PLLC	Washington, DC
Alissa E. Green	Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner	Washington, DC
Andrea L. Scripa	Morrison & Foerster, LLP	New York, NY
Andrew Demarco	Devlin Law Firm	Wilmington, DE
Angela K. Dremann	Knobbe, Martens, Olson & Bear, LLP	Irvine, CA
Anthony P. Marshik	Hamre, Schumann, Mueller & Larson, PC	Minneapolis, MN
Arne Hans	Sunstein, LLP	Boston, MA
Austin B. Yongye	Pabst Patent Group, LLP	Atlanta, GA
Benjamin R. Holt	Steptoe & Johnson, LLP	Washington, DC
Blaine M. Blackman	Wolf, Greenfield, Sacks, PC	New York, NY
Blake Davis	Latham & Watkins, LLP	San Francisco, CA
Bradley Berg	O’Melveny & Myers, LLP	Newport Beach, CA
Brian J. Lambson	Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr, LLP	Washington, DC
Briana Emerson	Blue Filament Law, PLLC	Birmingham, MI
Brianna Kadjo	Perkins Coie, LLP	Denver, CO
Charles D. Hammond	Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox, PLLC	Washington, DC
Charles Hsu	Dechert, LLP	Palo Alto, CA
Chipo Jolibois	Avery Dennison Corporation	Mentor, OH
Christian Dorman	Desmarais, LLP	Washington, DC
Christopher R. Abidin	Law Office of R. Alan Burnett	Tysons, VA
Daniel Klodowski	Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner	Washington, DC
Daniel P. Hughes	Knobbe, Martens, Olson & Bear, LLP	San Diego, CA
David Cho	Covington & Burling, LLP	Washington, DC
Deepa Kannappan	Cooley, LLP	Palo Alto, CA
Derek M. Abeyta	Quarles & Brady, LLP	Phoenix, AZ
Drew Christie	Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner	Washington, DC
Dustin M. Knight	Cooley, LLP	Washington, DC
Elana B. Araj	Greenberg, Traurig, LLP	New York, NY
Ellyar Y. Barazesh	Unified Patents, LLC	Chevy Chase, MD
Emma L. Frank	Wolf, Greenfield, Sacks, PC	Boston, MA
Eric Greenwald	Wolf, Greenfield, Sacks, PC	New York, NY
Gerard Cedrone	Goodwin Procter, LLP	Boston, MA
Grace J. Kim	Fish & Richardson	Minneapolis, MN
Gregory S. Nieberg	Wolf, Greenfield, Sacks, PC	New York, NY

Recipients H-M

Recipient Name	Law Firm/Company	City & State
Hannah Sadler	Global IP Law Group, LLC	Chicago, IL
Hao J. Wu	Norton, Rose, Fulbright US, LLP	Dallas, TX
Henry C. Thomas	Willkie Farr & Gallagher, LLP	Chicago, IL
Ian Soule	Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox, PLLC	Washington, DC
Jacob Porter	Dechert, LLP	Austin, TX
Jacqueline Lu	Dickinson Wright, PLLC	Austin, TX
James Brendan McGlew	McGlew and Tuttle, P.C.	Scarborough, NY
James H. Noel	Dority & Manning, PA	Greenville, SC
James J. Kristsas	Morgan Lewis & Bockius, LLP	Chicago, IL
Jean Nguyen	Morrison & Foerster, LLP	Los Angeles, CA
Jeffrey Soller	Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr, LLP	Boston, MA
Jennifer Carter	Baker Botts, LLP	Houston, TX
Jiao Wang	Fish & Richardson	Minneapolis, MN
Joanna Y. Chen	Polsinelli, LLP	San Francisco, CA
Joel Glazer	Devlin Law Firm	Wilmington, DE
John-Paul Fryckman	Fish & Richardson	San Diego, CA
Jonathan Ben-Ur Roses	Wolf, Greenfield, Sacks, PC	New York, NY
Jung S. Hahm	Unified Patents, LLC	Chevy Chase, MD
Kaitlin Abrams	Haug Partners, LLP	New York, NY
Karen Beckman	Merchant & Gould, PC	Minneapolis, MN
Karla Fry	Nguyen & Tarbet	Irvine, CA
Kathleen R. Geyer	Kilpatrick, Townsend & Stockton, LLP	Seattle, WA
Kathryn Chi	McCoy Russell, LLP	Portland, OR
Kurt Riester	Banner & Witcoff, Ltd.	Chicago, IL
Kyle S. Smith	Sidley Austin, LLP	Washington, DC
Kyle W. Doerrler	Patterson Thuente Pederson, PA	Minneapolis, MN
L. Roman Rachuba	Sughrue Mion, PLLC	Washington, DC
Lauren Murray	K&L Gates, LLP	Pittsburgh, PA
Lena Cavallo	Sunstein, LLP	Boston, MA
Mark A. Patrick	Arnold, Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP	Washington, DC
Megan Christner	Carlson, Caspers, Vandenburgh & Lindquist, PA	Minneapolis, MN
Michael L. Jespersen	Foley & Lardner, LLP	Detroit, MI
Michelle Aspen	Unified Patents, LLC	Washington, DC
Michelle Callaghan	Unified Patents, LLC	Washington, DC
Moses Xie	Folio Law Group	Seattle, WA

Recipients N-R

Recipient Name	Law Firm/Company	City & State
Nate Sunwoo	Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner	Washington, DC
Nathan Hsu	MG Miller	New York, NY
Neil Vaz	Ohlandt Greeley Ruggiero & Perle, LLP	Stamford, CT
Nicholas F. Palmieri	Baker Botts, LLP	New York, NY
Nicholas L. Evoy	Covington & Burling, LLP	Washington, DC
Nihal Parkar	Eversheds Sutherland	Atlanta, GA
Parvin Ghane	Fish & Richardson	Minneapolis, MN
Paul H. Belnap	Duane Morris, LLP	Washington, DC
Philip Eklem	Reichman Jorgensen Lehman & Feldberg, LLP	Washington, DC
Rachael P. Dippold	Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner	Washington, DC
Ren-How H. Harn	Willkie Farr & Gallagher, LLP	Chicago, IL
Rikki A. Hullinger	Casimir Jones, SC	Middleton, WI
Robert D. Ward	Eversheds Sutherland	San Diego, CA
Robert M. Breetz	Jones Day	Cleveland, OH
Roberto Fernandez	Foley & Lardner, LLP	Chicago, IL
Roderick O'Dorisio	Perkins Coie, LLP	Denver, CO
Ryan A. Peddle	Flaster Greenberg, PC	Philadelphia, PA
Ryan Chowdhury	Fish & Richardson	Minneapolis, MN
Ryan McCormick	M&B IP Analysts, LLC	Morrison, NJ
Ryan Thorne	Desmarais, LLP	New York, NY

Recipients S-Z

Recipient Name	Law Firm/Company	City & State
Sandy Ma	Foley & Lardner, LLP	San Diego, CA
Sarah Cassinis	Adsero IP	Littleton, CO
Sarah E. Jelsema	Klarquist Sparkman, LLP	Portland, OR
Sarah Goodman	Brinks Gilson & Lione	Chicago, IL
Sarah H. Stevens	Kubota & Basol, LLP	Los Angeles, CA
Sarah L. Boone	Renner Otto	Cleveland, OH
Sean Gloth	Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP	New York, NY
Seth Bruneel	Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner	Washington, DC
Shane Hannon	Cooley,LLP	Washington, DC
Shannon Lam	Knobbe, Martens, Olson & Bear, LLP	Irvine, CA
Shaun P. Mahaffy	Williams & Connolly, LLP	Washington, DC
Stephanie Mandir	Daignault Iyer, LLP	Vienna, VA
Stephen A. Merrill	Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox, PLLC	Washington, DC
Stephen Yam	Venable, LLP	Washington, DC
Steven M. Pappas	Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox, PLLC	Washington, DC
Steven Peters	King & Spalding, LLP	Washington, DC
Sydney R. Kestle	Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner	Washington, DC
Tarek J. Austin	Covington & Burling, LLP	Washington, DC
Tasha Thomas	Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati	Washington, D.C.
Thomas Foley	McCarter & English, LLC	Boston, MA
Timothy L. Tang	Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox, PLLC	Washington, D.C.
Tyler Train	Womble Bond Dickinson US, LLP	Irvine, CA
William Logan	Winston & Strawn, LLP	Houston, TX
Yieyie Yang	Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner	Washington, DC
Yury Kalish	Jones Day	Washington, DC
Zachary Loney	DLA Piper, LLP	Austin, TX

LEAP Practitioner Recognition

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