Helping clients build strong brands, avoid infringement and protect their brands, Ann has served as a trademark and copyright attorney in private practice and in-house for 25 years.
As former chief trademark counsel for Target, Ann is uniquely familiar with business challenges in-house counsel face in terms of pressures on people, time and money. Ann tailors her solutions to busy executives who need to navigate risk. She has a Fortune 50-style brand plan she can resize to any company to select, protect, defend and enforce trademarks in order to build strong brands. She actively enforces and defends trademarks and copyrights through correspondence, takedown notices, oppositions, cancellations and litigation. Although her clients are diverse, she has a strong focus in consumer packaged goods and retail.
Before joining Fredrikson & Byron, Ann served as chief trademark counsel to the second largest discount retailer in the United States. She advised on clearance, use, prosecution, maintenance, defense, enforcement, and licensing of its trademarks, copyrights and domain names. Ann managed a global trademark portfolio of more than 5,800 applications and registrations and she directed the search and review of up to 15,000 trademarks per year.
Prior to working in-house, Ann was a partner at one of the largest Twin Cities general practice firms. She provided comprehensive brand management and counseling regarding trademark and copyright clearance, use, prosecution, maintenance and related agreements. She managed large domestic and international trademark portfolios, including enforcing and defending trademarks, copyrights and domain names through cease-and-desist letters, UDRP proceedings, and proceedings before the TTAB and federal district court. She has conducted due diligence evaluations for acquisitions and divestitures, reviewed and cleared advertising and provided in-house trademark and copyright training for clients.
Ann is also a frequent speaker on trademark and copyright issues for the International Trademark Association (INTA) and Minnesota CLE.
