Industry-savvy IP transactions and patent prosecution

Steve Gardner is an intellectual property (IP) lawyer who works with both national and startup companies, research institutions and other IP owners to maximize the commercial value of their inventions and enforce IP rights. Steve has counseled clients on a wide variety of technologies, including software, magnetic resonance imaging, CT imaging, medical devices, industrial equipment, semiconductor chip manufacturing methods, artificial intelligence (AI), deep learning, neural networks, liquid crystal display devices, LED manufacturing, and processors and electronic controllers. Steve’s practice focuses on:

• IP transactions
• Patent prosecution
• IP enforcement

Steve brings a seasoned patent prosecutor’s mindset to the IP transactions he negotiates and a transaction negotiator’s know-how to the patents he prosecutes. The result for clients is patents that are more effectively commercialized and IP transactions rooted in solid, industry-leading patents.

Bar Admissions

• District of Columbia
• Wisconsin

Education

• Marquette University Law School (J.D., cum laude, 2006)

• Michigan State University (B.S., 2003)
  • Computer Engineering

• "Prospecting for Emerging Technology"
• "Sovereign Immunity of Patents: While a Strong Benefit to Patent Owners, These Patents Remain Subject to Traditional Challenges"
• "The China Initiative: Combating Economic Espionage and Trade Secret Exfiltration"
• "Understanding the Pros and Cons of Taking Equity in University Startups"
• DOJ's "China Initiative" - Five Things to Know
• Electronic Signatures and Patent Rights
• Fighting the Power: Construction Dispute Resolution with the U.S. Government
• Managing Cyber Risk for Research and Higher Education Institutions During COVID-19 Pandemic
• Patent Trial and Appeal Board Dismisses Second Inter Partes Review of University Patent on Sovereign Immunity Grounds
• Practical Advice Regarding Changes to Bayh-Dole Act Obligations
• Recent Updates to Bayh-Dole Obligations May Require New License Terms and Reporting Procedures for Federally-Funded Inventions
• Work From Home Presents Privacy and Security Considerations for Research and Higher Education Institutions

Seminar

• Big Data, Big Opportunity: The What, How, Dos and Don’ts of Licensing Data
• Business Law Training | The Executable Version of My Open Source Derivative Work for Hire is in the Cloud!? Demystifying Software Licenses to Protect Your Investments.
• Business Law Training | Who's Driving This? Overview and Impact of Autonomous and Connected Vehicles
• Circuits and Cells: Diagnostics, High-throughput Screening and Drug Development – Patenting the Intersection of Biotech and Informatics
• Competition or Collaboration? Understanding the Opposing Viewpoints of the Players in a University License Negotiation
• Data Licensing and Informed Consent: How to Future-Proof Data Acquisition for Commercialization Opportunities
• Data Licensing: An Untapped Resource or Something to Avoid?
• How and Why to Prepare Better Invention Disclosures
• How Are Academic Institutions Licensing Patient Data?
• Navigating Data Out-Licensing
• Navigating the Data and Machine Learning Landscape in the Life (and Physical) Sciences
• Open Source Licenses and Academic Tech Commercialization: A Choose Your Own Adventure Story
• Open Source Licenses and Technology Commercialization: Finding Your Ideal Path
• Patent Coverage and License Scope: How and When They Need to Align
• Patient Data Licensing Webinar Series, Continued - Q&A
• Potluck Inventions: When Everyone Brings a Dish, Who Owns the Dinner?
• Potluck Inventions: When Everyone Brings a Dish, Who Owns the Dinner?
• Recent Trends in USPTO Treatment in Claim Terms and How it Impacts Universities
• Software Licensing Series – Part 1 – Intellectual Property Protection for Software
• Summer Webinar Series
• The Three Guardrails of Patent License Royalties: Complying with Recent Case Law on Time, Geography, and Scope Limitations
• Timing is Everything: Deciding If and When You're Ready to File a Patent Application
• When and How to Prepare Invention Disclosures for AI-Related Technologies
• Workshop: NSF Regional Innovation Engines: A Program Authorized by the CHIPS and Science Act