Protecting the Value of Your Brand

During the earliest stages of building your business, we advise on fundamental issues like entity structure, founder ownership issues, intellectual property, and tax planning.

When it’s time to move from idea to reality, we’ll guide you through the process of forming your company as painlessly as possible. Our services include assisting with:

• Formation documentation
• Founders agreements
• Capitalization tables
• Confidentiality and IP assignment agreements
• Initial IP strategies

The Importance of Trademark Protection

Trademarking gives start-ups brand security. By trademarking a company name, you can distinguish its services and products from competitors. Protecting intellectual property by trademarking it prevents rivals from copying or stealing a company’s brand.

Widespread awareness of your brand and the goodwill embodied in your trademark can often take decades to establish. It’s worth the effort, because customer buying decisions are constantly influenced by trademarks:

• Trademarks make it easy for consumers to find you.
• Trademarks help distinguish your products and services and identify you as the source.
• Trademarks indicate a consistent level of quality associated with your brand.

Global Experience

Michael Best’s trademark team is trusted with protecting some of the world’s most well-known and valuable brands. We assist our clients with establishing, maintaining, protecting, and enforcing their rights in the United States and in more than 100 countries throughout the world. Our team is responsible for nearly 30,000 applications and registrations.
 

Meet the Team

Rick Ressler Managing Partner, Austin Office		Rick has dedicated his 30+ year legal career to developing his general counsel corporate and securities legal practice and providing excellent service to his clients and community. Rick offers clients a deeply educated, reasoned perspective and wide-ranging experience, having represented companies large and small, publicly traded and privately held. He has experience across industry sectors including consumer products, technology, transportation, and business accelerators. Specifically, Rick is a Founder of SKU Consumer Products Accelerator, and actively counseling CPG companies for growth and investment. Rick has held positions at law firms, in-house, and as outsourced general counsel. He has served as attorney and corporate officer, including for Union Pacific’s technology incubator. Rick believes singular legal advice is not enough. Rather, his advice and services are structured to support his clients’ short-term goals and long-term success. Click here to learn more about Rick.
Thomas Agnello Senior Associate		Thomas is a trademark attorney in the firm’s Intellectual Property Practice Group. His practice focuses on the acquisition, enforcement, and litigation of intellectual property rights, particularly related to trademarks and copyrights, both domestically and internationally. Click here to learn more about Tom.
Justin Cruz Attorney		Justin helps clients secure protection for their intellectual property assets, and then works to enforce and defend those rights. As a litigator, Justin has successfully represented clients in cases involving trademarks, patents, copyrights, and trade secrets, and integrates strategies to create and obtain enforceable intellectual property rights. He advises clients from many industry sectors, with a focus on the high-tech and new technology spaces.  Click here to learn more about Justin.
Susan Frohling Senior Counsel		Susan has more than 20 years of experience counseling clients in trademark and copyright matters. She advises consumer and industrial products companies on brand protection strategies and develops and implements enforcement programs to maximize the value of clients’ IP assets. Before returning to private practice, Susan spent 16 years in-house at Kraft Foods Group, Inc., serving as Chief Trademark Counsel during the final eight years. In this role, Susan handled a wide range of U.S. and global trademark and copyright matters including clearance, prosecution, maintenance, licensing, brand protection, enforcement, litigation, outsourcing, and transactional due diligence. She also developed internal programs for trademark and copyright policing and for social media strategy. Click here to learn more about Susan.
Emily Haas Senior Counsel		With over a decade of experience providing strategic trademark counsel to startups, Emily has expertise in a variety of industries. She focuses her practice in the areas of trademark and copyright law. Emily helps businesses protect and defend their valuable brand assets, as well as counsels clients on prosecution, portfolio management, clearance, enforcement, and dispute resolution. She’s built a strong enforcement and defense practice in the ever-evolving internet, social media, and e-commerce space. Click here to learn more about Emily.
Aaron Nodolf Partner		Aaron helps Venture Best clients leverage their innovations to spur further development and achieve their strategic growth goals. Clients turn to him for assistance with all aspects of U.S. and international intellectual property law, including advice on the protection and acquisition of IP assets and defense against competitor claims, as well as negotiation of agreements that help companies thrive. Whether counseling clients on patents, trademarks, copyrights, or trade secrets, Aaron develops creative strategies to secure and commercialize their assets.  Click here to learn more about Aaron.