Introduction

Tom is a shareholder in Fredrikson & Byron’s Intellectual Property Group. He focuses on drafting and prosecuting patents related to machines, mechanical and electro-mechanical devices, software, and manufacturing processes. Tom also draws on his patent litigation experience to help his clients analyze patent issues associated with their products and their competitors’ patents, developing non-infringement and/or invalidity positions and, when appropriate, preparing formal written opinions.

Tom works closely with his clients to formulate patent strategies that best advance their business objectives. His clients view him as a trusted counselor and appreciate his creativity and knowledge of the law in dealing with their wide variety of issues.

Education

• University of Minnesota Law School, J.D., 2003, magna cum laude
  - Minnesota Law Review, Managing Editor
• Minnesota State University, Mankato, B.S. Mechanical Engineering, 2000, cum laude

Bar Admissions

• Minnesota
• U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota
• U.S. Patent & Trademark Office

Practice Areas

• Intellectual Property
• Patents
• Intellectual Property Litigation
• IP Due Diligence, Mergers & Acquisitions, and Strategic Assessments
• Emerging Business
• Life Sciences
• Energy
• Renewable Energy
• Clean Technology

Representative Experience

Machines and Mechanical/Electro-Mechanical Devices

• Contrast injection systems for cardiology and radiology
• Personal protective equipment—helmets, respiration units, ear protection, eyewear, gloves, harnesses, footwear, etc.
• Limb enclosures for increasing blood flow via particular negative pressure pulses
• Oxidation ovens and infrared furnaces
• Transcatheter heart valves
• Equipment for coating eyeglass lenses
• Injection molding equipment
• MEMS piezoresitive pressure sensors and pressure transducers
• Equipment for making insulating glass units
• Subcutaneous heart monitors

Software

• Generating three-dimensional images of tissue based on tissue elasticity measurements
• Networks involving an implanted medical device, a programmer, and a remote server
• Automatically assigning addresses to components in a network
• Networks involving a thermostat, a utility, and a remote server
• Monitoring the battery longevity of an implanted medical device
• Determining respiration patterns based on the flow rate of air into and out of the patient’s lungs and changes in the patient’s lung volume
• Estimating bone mass density via ultrasound
• Mapping routes based on user-specified parameters
• Determining respiration patterns based on electromagnetic induction between a patient conductor loop and a remote conductor loop
• Imaging the interior of blood vessels via ultrasound
• Enterprise resource planning applications

Cleantech

• LED replacement lighting
• Biomass fractionation
• High-efficiency HVAC equipment
• Heat transfer modules for optimizing ethanol plant operation

Selected Publications & Presentations

• “IP Strategies in Moving from the Bench Toward Commercialization,” 2010 International Fuel Ethanol Workshop, St. Louis, June 15, 2010
• “USPTO Fast Tracks Green Patent Applications,” co-authored with Adonis Neblett, FredALERT: Cleantech, December 11, 2009
• “Key Cleantech Players Oppose Patent Reform Legislation,” co-authored with Mia Mendoza, FredALERT: Cleantech, March 13, 2009
• “Obtaining and Enforcing Intellectual Property,” 2008 Advanced Biofuels Workshop, Minneapolis, September 30, 2008
• “Don’t Underestimate the Value of Your Point-of-Purchase Displays,” co-authored with Dean R. Karau, Fredrikson & Byron’s Trademark Topics^SM, December 2007
• “Opinions of Patent Counsel as a Defense to Active Inducement Claims,” Fredrikson & Byron’s Intellectual Property Focus Newsletter, June 2007
• “U.S. Patent Law Implications of Transnational Production,” Fredrikson & Byron’s Intellectual Property Focus Newsletter, co-authored with Adonis Neblett, July 2006
• A Rebuttable Presumption of Dedication: Protecting the Hard-Luck Patentee from Johnson & Johnston's Dedication Rule, 87 Minn. L. Rev. 779 (2003)

Professional Activities

• Minnesota Intellectual Property Law Association
• American Intellectual Property Law Association
• Minnesota American Indian Bar Association

Community Involvement

• Liberty Classical Academy, Board Member (2009-2012)
• Twin Cities Christian Legal Aid, Board Member (2005-2009)