The Intellectual Property Section provides continuing legal educational (CLE) programs, proposes and/or comments upon changes in intellectual property law, and serves as a forum for the exchange of new ideas and networking among its members.
Phil Green
415 459 2000
phil@greenandgreen.com
Steve Nielsen
415 272 8210
steve@nielsenpatents.com
There are no upcoming Intellectual Property events
With mid-term elections just over a month away, it seems fitting that our October issue of the Marin Lawyer has several articles that touch on politics. For his President’s Message this month, Tom Brown chatted with outgoing District Attorney Ed Berberian, who reflects on his time in office and the challenges and pleasures of that role. Many thanks to our Guest Editor this month, Greg Brockbank, himself a (former) politician and eternal political activist, who profiles fellow activist Dotty LeMieux.
As we enter the final weeks of election season, I thought it would be an opportune time to sit down with District Attorney Edward S. Berberian. Ed and I discussed some of his highlights and challenges as District Attorney, the current election, his retirement plans, and what he will miss most about the job. Beginning with the obvious question, “Why retire?” Ed answered...
At the regularly scheduled MCBA general membership lunch meeting on September 26, MCBA Board President Tom Brown interviewed US District Court Judge William Orrick in an informative and highly interesting program. Even if, as an attorney, one doesn't follow the federal courts very closely, one almost can't help but to have heard the Orrick name.
I have been informally polling people for decades on what percentage of members of Congress are attorneys, and most people usually guess about 80%. The truth is that it's always been closer to 20%, give or take, but people often mistakenly assume that lawyers have an advantage in running for and winning high elective office, even though they are hardly even over-represented. Nor are attorneys over-represented among political activists, although there are of course a few of us. One of those is Dotty LeMieux, who stepped down at the end of last year after three years on the MCBA board. Indeed, Dotty is one of the super-activists, involved in several major Marin political organizations, including the Marin Democratic Party.
A look at the November election, from all the local races up to control of Congress, by a Marin political insider. Note: The views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and are not intended to reflect those of MCBA nor is the column an endorsement of any candidate.
August is often a dull month, where the pace has slowed from many people being on vacation or focusing on children returning to school. While perhaps that was the case for many of us this year, the news cycle did not take August off. When Morgan Daly started writing her article on a place for cash bail in bail reform, it looked as if California’s bail reform might be falling apart. But before the month was out, we had a signed bill that will go into effect in October, 2019. While a sea change in criminal justice was happening here, the criminal justice system back East produced some remarkable drama. Be sure to read Tom Brown’s President’s Message for some thoughts on how a perhaps unexpected institution is suffering from the latest events surrounding President Trump’s associates: the attorney-client relationship.
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