Richard McKenna, Foley & Lardner

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Richard McKenna considers himself an unusual intellectual property lawyer for a few reasons. The first being he’s been at Foley & Lardner since 1997. The second is his multi-faceted blend of specialization in both patent and trademark work.

“If you’re going to effectively counsel a client on all the facets of IP law, you have to know those facets as an IP lawyer,” McKenna said. “We tend to put people into boxes — you’re a patent lawyer; you’re a trademark lawyer — we should spend more time developing IP lawyers.”

The trademark side of his practice includes selection, adoption, use and enforcement of trademarks, while the patent side focusing on prosecution of U.S. and foreign patents, product clearance studies, potential patent infringement analysis and developing effective worldwide intellectual protection strategies. He blends the two by immersing himself in the marketplace and getting involved in the client’s product development, counseling them on the patent and trademarks intersect with their business goals.

McKenna regularly speaks and lectures on IP matters and has served on International Trademark Association committees.