IU McKinney's IP Center Launches Clinic under USPTO Program
10/14/2020
IU McKinney has just launched a new intellectual property law clinic. It came about when a law student was seeking an externship opportunity for Summer 2020; he needed to replace the one that fell through once the coronavirus pandemic hit the United States. And IU McKinney alumni have provided invaluable leadership in these efforts.
Operated under the auspices of the United States Patent and Trademark Office IP Clinic Certification Program, IU McKinney 3L Mike Webb worked with alumni Pervin Taleyarkhan, ’13, Matthew Clark,’13, and Derek Lavender, ‘14, toward starting the clinic for the Center for Intellectual Property and Innovation. Upon receiving faculty final approval, Taleyarkhan is set to serve as the clinic’s director and as an adjunct professor, while Clark and Lavender will serve as clinic faculty supervisors on the patent and trademark side, respectively. All their work will make it possible for the clinic to function under the USPTO’s Law School Clinic Certification Program and deliver opportunities for students to gain practical, collaborative experiences in drafting, filing, and prosecuting trademark and patent applications for real-world clients, all while still in law school.
All three alumni work in intellectual property law: Taleyarkhan is an in-house IP Legal Counsel at Whirlpool Corporation; Clark is an attorney at Frost Brown Todd where he practices in the areas of trademark, copyright, entertainment, and internet law; and Lavender is a registered patent attorney at Taft Stettinius & Hollister.
Webb got involved in the clinic’s launch when his IP externship evaporated because of the coronavirus pandemic. He worked at Rolls-Royce for 13 years before enrolling in law school at IU McKinney, where he’s part of the evening division. Webb now works as a technical analyst in the IP department at Indianapolis-based Barnes & Thornburg. He was set to work with in-house counsel at Rolls-Royce during Summer 2020, but the pandemic made that impossible. He worked with Professor Cynthia Baker, Director of Experiential Learning at the law school, to develop a Supervised Externship Placement. It was during this SEP that Webb and Taleyarkhan worked together on efforts to start the IP clinic. Webb also was able to gain some practical experience from Taleyarkhan and her in-house counsel position at Whirlpool.
The experience of helping launch the IP clinic hasn’t exactly taken the place of the externship Webb would have had at his former employer, but it has been a valuable experience, he said. “Although it wasn’t hands-on in a corporation, it has actually worked out great in multiple other areas,” Webb said of the experience. “It enforced my patent bar learning. It introduced me to some in-house topics and new ways of thinking about inventor interviews. Pervin has been a great contact and invited me to join a local IP Inn of Court. And I have really enjoyed being able to help establish the IP clinic, which will hopefully get more students involved in IP!”
Students who take part in the clinic will directly interact with and help clients address their IP needs in the patents and trademarks spaces, Taleyarkhan said. She said she was looking for an opportunity to pay forward some of the mentorship and opportunities she’s been given in her career. “This has been quite an adventure,” Taleyarkhan said of efforts to get the clinic up and running. “I see this as an opportunity to contribute to the future of our profession, help our community, and importantly, take advantage of my unique in-house perspectives to enrich the clinic students’ experiences. I owe a lot to this law school, and I am looking forward to helping bring this clinic to life, and hopefully become a self-sustaining, well-oiled machine that will last well beyond my time of direct involvement.”
Gaining as much practical experience as possible while in law school is a critical part of future success, Lavender said. For him, that experience came through work he did as a law clerk at what would become his firm after graduation, Taft Stettinius & Hollister. “I believe that it is crucial to start practicing what you are learning in law school as soon as possible,” Lavender said. “This clinic gives students a great opportunity to obtain real-world experience practicing law while helping clients obtain IP protection and potentially monetize their innovation. This clinic can be a great resource to help both students and innovators alike.”
