Michael’s practice encompasses all areas of intellectual property law, including patents, trademarks, trade dress, copyrights, and trade secrets. He helps clients in litigation and other adversarial proceedings, including alternative dispute resolution proceedings and Section 337 investigations at the U.S. International Trade Commission, and through counseling, opinions, and the procurement of intellectual property rights. Michael has represented a wide range of clients, including a leader of lifestyle products, a popular footwear and fitness apparel brand, and a personal care corporation with a portfolio of global brands, among others.

Michael has extensive experience in all phases of intellectual property litigation and dispute resolution proceedings, from pre-suit investigations through hearings, trial, and appeal. His representations include:

• YETI (patent, trademark, trade dress, copyright, and related claims for a wide range of lifestyle products, including coolers, drinkware, and bags)
• NIKE (patent and trademarks claims related to footwear and apparel)
• Kimberly-Clark (patent claims related to diapers, training pants, adult incontinence products, and bed mats)
• Lexmark (patent and copyright claims related to toner cartridges and microchips on toner cartridges)
• Allstate (patent claims related to insurance products)
• Fiserv (patent claims related to electronic banking)
• Newell Rubbermaid (patent claims related to window hardware)
• Focal Point (patent claims related to lighting fixtures)

He also has significant experience in counseling, opinions, and procurement, including prosecuting trademark applications in the U.S. and internationally, managing trademark portfolios, prosecuting copyright applications, and providing patent opinions related to infringement and validity.

Michael has consistently been recognized by Super Lawyers as an Illinois Rising Star for his work in intellectual property law. He has been included as an Illinois Rising Star for 10 consecutive years, most recently in 2019. The Rising Stars list represents the top 2.5 percent of attorneys in each state.

Drawing on his experience, Michael previously served as an adjunct professor at Loyola University Chicago School of Law, during which time he taught the specialized intellectual property section of legal writing.

He graduated magna cum laude from Loyola University Chicago School of Law. He gained valuable experience as a judicial extern for the Honorable William J. Hibbler and the Honorable Ruben Castillo of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. He also served as a production editor for the Loyola University Chicago Law Journal.

Michael earned his Bachelor of Science degree in materials engineering, with distinction, from Iowa State University, where he focused on polymers and the electronic properties of materials. As an undergraduate, he researched chemical vapor deposition and performed X-ray diffraction analysis of strontium niobate films.

Michael is a registered patent attorney and is admitted to practice before the Illinois Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth, Ninth, and Federal Circuits, and numerous federal district courts.