Cantor Colburn LLP is pleased to announce that four attorneys from its Hartford office were recently named to the 2016 list of Connecticut Super Lawyers and Rising Stars lists. Super Lawyers selects attorneys using peer nominations and evaluations, combined with independent research, and only 5% of attorneys are selected to be Super Lawyers and only 2.5% of attorneys are selected to Rising Stars. The Rising Stars selection process is the Super Lawyers selection process except that candidates must be either 40 years old or younger or in practice for ten years or fewer.
The lawyers, named with the practice area for which they are recognized, include:
Connecticut Super Lawyers 2016
Andrew C. Ryan, Intellectual Property Litigation
Connecticut Rising Stars 2016
Michelle Ciotola, Intellectual Property
Alicia Hayter, Intellectual Property
David E. Rodrigues, Ph.D., Intellectual Property
Andrew Ryan is a partner in Cantor Colburn’s Litigation Practice Group and chairs the firm’s Post-Grant Practice Group. He is a trial lawyer with over fifteen years of experience representing plaintiffs and defendants in patent cases and other intellectual property and complex litigation matters. He also has significant experience in Inter Partes Review (IPR) and other adversarial proceedings in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Mr. Ryan has experience in a wide variety of industry areas, including electronics and semiconductors, robotics, automotive components, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and biotechnology. He has participated in and led matters before the U.S. District Courts of CT, MA, NY, NJ, DE, FL, CA, TX, the Patent Trial and Appeals Board (PTAB), the International Trade Commission (ITC), and the U.S. Court of Appeal for the Federal Circuit. He has a bachelor’s degree from the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Allied Health Sciences and a JD from Western New England University School of Law. Mr. Ryan is admitted to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, to the bars of the state of Connecticut and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and to the U.S. District Courts for the Districts of Massachusetts and Connecticut.
Michelle P. Ciotola is partner and Vice Chair of the firm’s Trademark & Copyright Department. She concentrates her practice on counseling, protecting and enforcing trademark, trade dress, copyright, and related intellectual property rights, as well as counseling clients in unfair competition, Internet, advertising, and promotions law. She assists clients in the development and exploitation of their trademark portfolios, including clearance of marks; prosecution of trademark applications before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office; and identifying important overseas jurisdiction and filing or coordinating with local counsel for protection and enforcement of marks in those jurisdictions. Michelle develops strategies for the enforcement of her clients’ intellectual property rights, including preparing demand letters, negotiating settlement agreements, handling opposition and cancellation actions before the U.S. Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, and coordinating and overseeing litigation with local counsel around the world. She also develops strategies for enforcement of her clients’ intellectual property rights online, including handling Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy proceedings. Michelle files and prosecutes applications for copyright registration with the U.S. Copyright Office and advises clients on copyright law. She represents clients in trademark due diligence. She drafts and negotiates a wide range of intellectual property agreements, including assignments, licenses, and trademark consent and coexistence agreements. Michelle is an active member of the International Trademark Association (INTA) and she was instrumental in the development of INTA’s law student ambassador program and the annual meeting scholarship program. She is a frequent speaker at the Career Development Day (formerly Academic Day) at INTA’s Annual Meeting. She has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Connecticut and a JD from the University of New Hampshire School of Law (formerly known as the Franklin Pierce Law Center). She is admitted to the bars of the state of Connecticut and New York and to the U.S. District Court for the State of Connecticut.
Alicia Hayter focuses her practice on the preparation and prosecution of patent applications related to mechanical engineering technologies, serving both foreign and domestic clients. Ali also prepares opinions and does searching. Within the mechanical arts, she has handled a wide range of technologies including aerospace and aeronautical components, engines, heating and cooling systems, and component manufacturing systems. Ms. Hayter has a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from Villanova University and a JD from the University of Connecticut School of Law. She is admitted to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and to the bar of the state of Connecticut.
David Rodrigues, Ph.D. has 15 years of experience in patent preparation and prosecution, due diligence, opinion work, including non-infringement, invalidity, and right-to-practice as well as overall strategic portfolio development. Prior to becoming a patent attorney, he worked as a Plant Chemist for Armstrong World Industries and as a Pilot Plant Manager for General Electric Silicones and the General Electric Global Research Center. Dr. Rodrigues has drafted and prosecuted over 600 patent applications; a large number of these were directed to polymer synthesis and to polymer processing. He has also drafted and prosecuted patent applications directed to optics, solar cells, photovoltaic cells, x-ray and electron beam devices, desalination, carbon dioxide capture and sequestration systems, wind turbines, textured surfaces for controlling bioadhesion, and so on. Dr. Rodrigues specializes in drafting applications that require a combination of material, chemical, mathematical, and/or mechanical skills. He has a bachelor’s of mechanical engineering from Karnatak University, in Dharwad, India, a Ph.D. and a master’s of science in materials engineering and science from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, and a JD from the University of Connecticut School of Law. He is admitted to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and to the bar of the state of Connecticut.