Christopher M. Arena has nearly 25 years of experience in intellectual property law, with his focus including both the business aspects of intellectual property and the acquisition of intellectual property rights through the preparation and prosecution of patent and trademark applications worldwide.
Having previously served as the Chief Intellectual Property Counsel for Cingular Wireless and earlier as Chief Patent Counsel for BellSouth Corporation, Chris has a strong command over all areas of IP practice.
In addition to IP strategy development and his patent practice, he has particular skill in transactional matters, especially asset acquisition and management, licensing, indemnification enforcement and litigation management.
At BakerHostetler, Chris applies these skills to help clients achieve greater value for their businesses through strategic use of intellectual property. Chris is the co-author of one of the definitive books on IP strategy, The Business of Intellectual Property, published by Oxford University Press.
Experience :
- As leader of BakerHostetler’s Indemnification Recovery practice, led a team charged with the enforcement of patent indemnification provisions in close to 200 complex patent infringement litigations and pre-litigation cases, resulting in the diversion and recovery of millions of dollars for his clients.
- Worked with several Fortune 100 companies to develop and implement comprehensive intellectual property strategic plans and procedures to create and extract value from intellectual property assets.
- Worked with a start-up client as acting general counsel to secure worldwide patent and trademark rights and to successfully launch an international telecommunications system for underdeveloped countries.
- Negotiated a complex critical trademark transition rights agreement in a multibillion-dollar merger.
Memberships : State Bar of Georgia, Intellectual Property Section, Technology Law Section.
Education :
- J.D., George Mason University School of Law, 1989
- B.S., Electrical Engineering, University of Notre Dame, 1982, cum laude
Admissions :
- U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Registration No. 35,429
- Georgia
- Pennsylvania
Cost
Rate : $$$
