April 2010 Special Report
LEYDIG, VOIT & MAYER, LTD. - SPECIAL REPORT
Leydig, Voit & Mayer, Ltd., is pleased to announce the opening of its office in Frankfurt, Germany, on April 1, 2010.
Focusing on the U.S. intellectual property needs of European and multinational clients are U.S. attorneys Thomas P. Canty, Erik R. Swanson, and Norman B. Thot, as well as Leigh Buell, a U.S. patent agent with an extensive mechanical engineering background. All were formerly with Darby & Darby.
“The attorneys and staff in the Frankfurt office bring to the firm many years of experience and dedication to outstanding client service,” said H. Michael Hartmann, the firm’s president. “We look forward to working with our new colleagues.”
“We are very excited about joining Leydig,” said Canty. “The firm’s long history and solid reputation across the spectrum of intellectual property law is just the right mix to support the goals of our practice — bringing the best-quality U.S. IP legal services to the doorstep of our European clients. No other U.S. law firm is on the ground in Germany offering that breadth and depth of services.”
Mr. Canty practices law exclusively in the field of intellectual property, with an emphasis on patent matters. He frequently evaluates and counsels clients with respect to potential patent infringement situations. He has prosecuted patent applications in diverse technical areas before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, resulting in the issuance of hundreds of U.S. patents. His patent work has involved a wide array of fields, including medical devices, aerospace, optics, chemical processes, telecommunications, energy production, and automotive and industrial machinery. Mr. Canty has a B.S. degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Rochester, and a J.D. degree from Boston University. Before attending law school, he began his professional career as an engineer in the automotive industry.
“Leydig has a great reputation, and is a good fit for us in terms of both firm culture and strategic goals,” said Swanson. “Leydig’s top capabilities in all areas of U.S. intellectual property law, together with our location here in the heart of Europe, will enable us to provide high-quality, cost-effective U.S. IP services to European clients.”
Mr. Swanson focuses his intellectual property practice on patent matters, including prosecution, litigation, and licensing. He is experienced in patent litigation in U.S. district courts and in interference proceedings before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. His work involves a wide range of electrical, mechanical, and computer technologies, including electronic control systems, computer hardware and software, semiconductors, sensors, optics, and telecommunications. Mr. Swanson has a B.S. degree in aeronautical and astronautical engineering from Purdue University, and a J.D. degree from the University of Virginia. Prior to beginning his legal career, he spent eight years as a Navy nuclear submarine officer, during which time he gained extensive experience in nuclear power, electronics, chemistry, and telecommunications. He graduated first in his class from the U.S. Naval Nuclear Power School.
Mr. Thot has experience in prosecuting both U.S. and European patent applications; drafting freedom-to-operate, non-infringement and invalidity opinions; and analyzing third-party patents for potential reexamination/opposition and invalidity attacks. He also has experience in drafting and negotiating contracts with an intellectual property focus, including confidentiality agreements, research and development agreements, patent licensing and sale agreements, toll and custom manufacturing agreements, material transfer agreements and intellectual property aspects of mergers and acquisitions. He previously worked in the Bayer AG Patent Department in Germany, and subsequently for Lanxess Deutschland GmbH following the split-off and spin-off of the Chemicals Division from the Bayer Group. Mr. Thot received a B.A. degree in chemistry from the University of California in Santa Barbara, and a J.D. degree from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law. He also has an LL.M. from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, and a Doktor Jur from the University of Cologne.
Ms. Buell works as a technical advisor with an emphasis in mechanical engineering. She has a B.S. degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Tennessee and two M.S. degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She previously worked for the Saturn Car Company in Tennessee and the U.S. Department of Energy. After completing her MBA at the Collège des Ingénieurs in France, she worked at Bombardier Transportation in Germany.
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