Lee & Hayes
Firm overview:
Known for its strengths in patent work, full-service IP firm Lee & Hayes has developed a robust trademark practice that serves leading-edge companies. The team is sought after for its skill in building, maintaining and protecting worldwide trademark portfolios, and has an internal docketing system to assist with management. With IP at its core, the firm is well placed to advise on trademark and brand asset transactions and licensing.
When litigation is required, Lee & Hayes has a deep bench of experienced litigators who appear in district courts, appellate courts and administrative forums. The team works closely with clients to find tailor-made solutions for trademark enforcement, which could include working with Customs and Border Protection, initiating UDRP proceedings, or e-commerce platform takedowns.
Team overview:
The firm employs approximately 75 attorneys, patent agents, and technical specialists across offices in Atlanta, Austin, Portland (Metro), Rochester, Seattle, Spokane, and Washington DC. Most of the team’s trademark expertise is found in the Spokane office.
Lee & Hayes does not operate a defined hierarchy in which inexperienced associates produce work under partner supervision; clients are often directly served by highly experienced team members. The firm has been Mansfield Rule Certified since 2023.
Rhett Barney leads the Trademark & Brand Management Practice Group, and has experience across all areas of trademark law, with particular expertise in prosecution, Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) proceedings, litigation and anti-counterfeiting. Barney draws on his experience as a former marketing and branding professional to provide business-focused counsel to clients in a wide range of industries.
Talented members of the team include Johanna Tomlinson, an associate attorney who serves as one of the firm’s initial drafters for responses to US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) actions refusing to register trademarks. Tomlinson’s clients appreciate her creative approach and deep knowledge of the law, and she has a busy caseload of TTAB proceedings, as well as district court cases involving trademark, copyright and patent litigation, and enforcement matters.
Key matters:
- Iltron: Trademark prosecution and strategy
Led by Rhett Barney, the team manages the US and global trademark portfolios for Iltron, which offers products and services for energy and water resource management.
- Zoox: Trademark prosecution and strategy
Lee & Hayes is responsible for Zoox’s trademark portfolio and is responsible for advancing the company’s flagship house mark through the USPTO. The Amazon-owned company develops autonomous, electric ‘robotaxis’ designed for a ride-hailing service.
- OpenTable: Trademark prosecution
Lee & Hayes manages the US and global trademark portfolios for Opentable.
Clients:
Gemini, Good Meat Project, Itron, KaiJet Technology (dba j5create), Kayak Software, Opentable, Seismic Software, Selkirk Sport, Sensata Technologies, Spiceology, Zoox
