Robert J. (Bob) Lauson

Email: bob@lauson.com

Practice Areas: Intellectual Property, Patents, Trademarks, Trade Dress, Copyrights, Unfair Competition, Licensing, Trade Secrets, Misappropriation of Ideas.

Admitted: 1994 All California Courts and U.S. Patent & Trademark Office.

Law School: Southwestern University School of Law (Los Angeles), J.D. 1994.

Organizations: Los Angeles Intellectual Property Law Association 1992 – present (Board of Directors 2002 - 2004); Los Angeles County Bar Association, Manhattan Beach Chamber of Commerce, American Inns of Court.

Selected Reported Cases: NCE v. Lockheed-Martin.pdf 43 USPQ2d 1036 (C.D. Cal. 1997) (motion for preliminary injunction granted in trademark case); Guthy-Renker Fitness v. Icon Health.pdf 48USPQ2d1058 (C.D. Cal.,1998) (motion to stay granted pending patent reexamination); Microsoft v. Utility Group Unlimited.pdf 51 USPQ2d 1603 (C.D. Cal. 1999) (Microsoft ordered to return documents and materials seized when seizure order not confirmed); Guthy-Renker v. Bernstein.pdf 1999 U.S. Dist. Lexis 23361, 27 Media L Rep. 2084 (C.D. Cal 1999) (liquidated damages provision found unenforceable); Electropix v. Liberty Media.pdf 178 F. Supp. 2d 1125 (C.D.Cal. 2001) (preliminary injunction imposed; (court later modified its order and broadened the injunction and the case settled with defendants changing their name)); Guthy Renker v. Bernstein.pdf 2002 U.S. App. Lexis 8369 (9th Cir 2002) (affirming judgment awarding Bernstein only nominal damages); Wolf Designs v. DHR.pdf 322 F. Supp 2d1065 (C.D. Cal. 2004) (Defendants motion to dismiss denied).

Publications: “Nondisclosure Agreements.pdf" Los Angeles Lawyer, Sep. 2000; “Cease and Desist Letters in Intellectual Property Disputes.pdf” Los Angeles Lawyer, Sep. 1999 (Reprinted in Computer Lawyer, Dec. 1999); “The Problem of Joint Inventorship,” National Law Journal, April, 1996;  “Patent Prosecution on Contingency,” New Matter Spring, 1994.

In 2005 Mr. Lauson was quoted in a news story concerning the court of appeals for the federal circuits decision in Lamle vs. Mattel.pdf.

Technical Education: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, B.S. Engineering (with honors) 1980, M.S. Engineering 1982.

Industry Experience: McDonnell-Douglas (Huntington Beach, CA) Space Station Freedom structure design, electrical systems design 1987-1992; Northrop (Pico Rivera, CA) B-2 Bomber structures design; General Dynamics (San Diego) Cruise Missile manufacturing engineering.

Edward C. (Ed) Schewe

Email:  ed@lauson.com

Practice Areas:  Patents, Trademarks and Service Marks, Unfair Competition, Trade Dress, Trade Secrets, Trademark Opposition and Cancellation Proceedings, Patent Procurement before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and Intellectual Property Litigation in Federal and State Courts.

Admissions:  All state and federal courts in California and the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.  U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, Reg. No. 34,246.

Law School:  Pepperdine University School of Law (Malibu, California), J.D. 1989.

Organizations:  West Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce.

Reported Patent Cases:  Cybiotronics v. Smoothline, 130 F.Supp.2d 1152 (C.D. Cal. 2001) (prevailed on summary judgment of noninfringement and on patentee’s failure to mark and give actual notice);  Cybiotronics v. Golden Source, 2001 WL 327826 (C.D. Cal. 2001) (prevailed on summary adjudication on patentee’s failure to mark and give actual notice).  

Technology Experience:  Satellite based navigation systems;  Atomic force microscopes;  Fiber optic amplifiers and Fiber optic gyroscopes;  Prompt Gamma Neutron Activation Analyzers;  Digital film colorization technology;   Telephone caller ID systems;  Mechanical packaging systems for CDs and DVDs;  Battery chargers and overcharge protection circuitry;  Luggage designs and trade dress;  Clean room compatible research tables.  Successfully petitioned to reinstate U.S. Patent No. 4,538,497.  

Publications:  "To Avoid Infringement Problems, Start with Expert Counsel" Avoid Infringement Problems Article.pdf, San Diego Daily Transcript, February 1999;  "Handling a Domain-Name Dispute the Right Way", San Diego Daily Transcript, March 1999;  "Naming Correct Inventors:  Lessons Learned from the Recent Perseptive and Upjohn Patent Cases", San Diego Daily Transcript, October 2000.

Technical Education:  University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, M.S. Engineering 1982 (conducted earthquake engineering research);  Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, B.S. Engineering 1980.