On September 20, Seed Intellectual Property Law Group LLP was the proud host of "Latest Trends in IP, Brand Alliance and Strategies," an afternoon panel discussion on important trademark topics brought to you by some of Seattle’s preeminent brand owners. Counsel from Starbucks Corporation, Amazon.com, and The Pokémon Company International, Inc., as well as leading IP academics, discussed topics ranging from the latest brand strategies employed by industry leaders, the recent brand alliances, and impacts of AI on the practice. This seminar was presented by the Seattle chapter of the CHIZAI (IP) Group.

The conference was successful and very well-received. Please see photographs posted below.

Seminar Location: Columbia Center, 701 Fifth Avenue, Floor 40 Conference Room, from 3:00 - 5:00 p.m.

Post-Seminar Reception: The office of Seed IP Law Group LLP, Columbia Center, 701 Fifth Avenue, Floor 54, from 5:00 - 6:30 p.m.

MCLE: Two Washington State MCLE credits were approved for the seminar.

Cost: Complimentary
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Moderator:

Russell C. Pangborn, Partner, Seed Intellectual Property Law Group LLP | Mr. Pangborn is a partner at Seed Intellectual Property Law Group, where he focuses his practice largely on trademark and technology. He specializes in trademarks and internet policy, including strategic counseling, portfolio management, and enforcement for trademarks and domain names. Mr. Pangborn is admitted to the Washington Bar, the California Bar, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, and the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. He is also an active member of INTA and ICANN.



Speaker:

Xuan-Thao Nguyen, Professor, Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law | Professor Nguyen is an internationally known legal scholar renowned for her expertise in the intersections of Intellectual Property, Secured Transactions, Bankruptcy, Licensing, and Taxation.

PowerPoint | "IP Finance: Enhancing the IP Assets"





Panelists:

Signe Naeve, Director, Corporate Counsel for IP, Starbucks Corporation | Ms. Naeve is director, corporate counsel for intellectual property at Starbucks Coffee Company. She is responsible for prosecution and enforcement of trademarks and copyrights in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. Prior to joining Starbucks, Ms. Naeve was a Law Lecturer at the University of Washington School of Law, Director of the IP LL.M. Program, and Associate Director for Center for Advanced Study and Research on Intellectual Property (CASRIP). She was also Of Counsel with Hughes Media Law Group, where she managed the trademark practice. Ms. Naeve began her career in litigation at Perkins Coie LLP.

Kaoru Otawara, Associate General Counsel, The Pokémon Company International, Inc. | Ms. Otawara is an Associate General Counsel of The Pokémon Company International Inc. (TPCi), where she has been specializing in intellectual property and privacy and consumer product compliance. She also manages video games and mobile apps for the Pokémon franchise as a video game lawyer. Prior to working at TPCi, Ms. Otawara was a Legal Manager at Fast Retailing Co., Ltd. (known as the “Uniqlo” brand in Japan). Outside of TPCi, she enjoys life in Seattle with her husband, their 9-month-old daughter, and their two lovely Italian greyhounds.

Mark Warnick, Senior Corporate Counsel for Trademarks, Amazon.com | Mr. Warnick is a senior corporate counsel at Amazon.com, where he has worked as a trademark lawyer since 2011. He previously worked as a trademark lawyer at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati in Palo Alto, which he joined in 2002 after graduating from the University of Chicago Law School. Prior to law school, Mr. Warnick worked as a news reporter for several daily newspapers, including the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Chicago Tribune, and the Los Angeles Herald Examiner. He also has a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Washington and a master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University.



Registration: Click here to register for Seattle CHIZAI (IP) Seminar - September 20 | (The event date has now passed.)

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About CHIZAI (IP):

The Bay Area CHIZAI (Japanese for "intellectual property") Group was founded in the San Francisco Bay Area, in November 2016, by Ms. Toshiko Takenaka, Professor at University of Washington and Keio University; and by Mr. Takuya Izumi, an officer dispatched by the Japan Patent Office (JPO) to work at NEDO’s Silicon Valley office. The CHIZAI Group originally aimed to provide a unique learning opportunity and communication platform for Japanese IP professionals working for U.S. subsidiaries and branches of Japanese companies and law firms. This unique initiative captured a lot of attention from local U.S. IP professionals, who joined the group to network with Japanese IP professionals and to learn Japanese business and IP practice. In 2018, the group expanded its geographical reach beyond the Bay Area, to now include the hosting of annual events in Seattle and Los Angeles. In June of 2019, Mr. Izumi returned to the JPO, and was replaced at NEDO by Mr. Yoshinari Oyama. Mr Oyama is currently running all CHIZAI events with Professor Takenaka.

Toshiko Takenaka, Of Counsel, Seed Intellectual Property Law Group LLP | Professor Takenaka is a Washington Research Foundation/W. Hunter Simpson Professor of Technology Law at the University of Washington School of Law (Seattle), Professor of Law at Keio University Law School (Tokyo), and Of Counsel at Seed IP Law Group LLP. She received a visiting professorship to teach a course at Technical University of Munich (TUM) from the state of Bavaria during the 2016-2018 fall semesters, and received the title of TUM Ambassador from the University President in December of 2018. Prof. Takenaka teaches IP law annually at University of Strasbourg and University of Lyon III. She served as the Director of Center for Advanced Study and Research on Intellectual Property (CASRIP) at the Univ. of Washington School of Law from 2003 through 2015.

Yoshinari Oyama, Senior Director, Technology and IP, NEDO (Silicon Valley Office) | Mr. Oyama is the Senior Director of the NEDO Silicon Valley Office and is responsible for research on R&D and intellectual property. He worked for the Japan Patent Office for over 14 years before joining NEDO. As a patent examiner and an administrative judge, Mr. Oyama examined patent applications in the field of video games, toys, e-learning systems, and maps. He also worked in several intellectual property policy areas such as amendment of Patent, Design, and Trademark Laws, Patent Examination Guidelines, trade negotiations at APEC, WIPO, WTO, and consultation for small and medium-sized enterprises. Mr. Oyama earned an Intellectual Property LL.M. from the University of Washington in 2012.



EVENT PHOTOS:

Left to right: Mark Warnick, Kaoru Otawara, Russ Pangborn, Toshiko Takenaka, Yoshinari Oyama, and Signe Naeve

Mark Warnick, Senior Corporate Counsel for Trademarks, Amazon.com

Mark Warnick, Senior Corporate Counsel for Trademarks, Amazon.com

Signe Naeve, Director, Corporate Counsel for IP, Starbucks Corporation

Kaoru Otawara, Associate General Counsel, The Pokémon Company International, Inc.

CHIZAI (IP) attendees listening to panelist Kaoru Otawara, Associate General Counsel, The Pokémon Company International, Inc.

Xuan-Thao Nguyen, Professor, Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law

Russell C. Pangborn, Partner, Seed Intellectual Property Law Group LLP

Toshiko Takenaka, Of Counsel, Seed Intellectual Property Law Group LLP

Distinguished panelists and speakers of CHIZAI (IP).