Brian J. Hubbard

Brian J. Hubbard is a partner with extensive experience from both law firm and in-house perspectives. He knows that whether you’re a small start-up or a large corporation, you need a business plan for leveraging your intellectual property. However, Brian adds, “sometimes, you already have the plan, and all you need is reliable counsel to implement your strategy in a timely and cost effective manner.”

At times, Brian notes, you need fast-paced, responsive, and direct advice designing the right strategy. Other times, perhaps you just need an objective, pragmatic listener to act as a sounding board at critical decision points. Brian is an adept ally, skilled in a variety of technologies, focused on capturing value, and ready to deliver everything from a suite of defensive patent applications to a formal opinion reinforcing your analysis of a right to practice.

While many discussions about intellectual property strategy focus mainly on the power to exclude, Brian notes that, “my experience has been that IP can also be a strong force for bringing companies together. It’s the ‘I’ve got the chocolate, you’ve got the peanut butter’ situation.” “People want to work with innovators, to leverage that expertise and build new things together,” Brian says. Of course, the yardstick of any intellectual property agreement is allocating and protecting rights in a way that allows mutual benefit and flexibility in the future. And, as important as it is to get the right agreement in place, it is equally important to get practical, business-oriented advice on managing relationships under the agreement. “With my personality, passionate advocacy and adherence to strategy in the face of adversity comes naturally,” Brian notes. He adds with a smile, “What I’ve come to appreciate with experience, though, is you have to embrace those opportunities to compromise too.”