Benjamin F. Williams

Ben advises startups, corporations, and individual inventors on IP strategies (predominantly patents, trademarks, and, to some extent, trade secrets) to secure and protect their ideas, their vision, know-how, and brands.

He represents clients before the UPSTO, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board and the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (in inter partes and ex parte proceedings), and, if necessary, in federal court.

With more than a decade’s experience prosecuting patents before the UPSTO (and with foreign counsel, regional and national offices overseas), Ben advises startups on comprehensive patent and trademark strategy every step of the way, from filing to issuance, from prosecution to post-grant review and enforcement, from domestic to international protection under the Patent Cooperation Treaty, the Paris Agreement, and the Madrid Protocol. Ben has won over 130 patents.

In litigation, Ben recently represented the plaintiff in the Central District of California after a corporate buyout went south; he won the company back, disassociated the majority owners, and secured a sizeable payout for his client.

Ben also recently represented the patentee in an infringement action for industrial safety equipment, securing a successful settlement early on, before claim construction.

In his very first case, Ben succeeded in attaining a default judgment against an online “company” perpetrating widespread trademark fraud.

Additionally, he has successfully defended numerous clients from claims of copyright infringement (including claims against a clothing manufacturer by a large publisher and rights-holder to a famous novel), avoiding damages in all cases and preempting suit.