Headquartered within steps of the USPTO with an affiliate office in Tokyo, Oblon is one of the largest law firms in the United States focused exclusively on intellectual property law.
1968
Norman Oblon with Stanley Fisher and Marvin Spivak launched what was to become Oblon, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt, LLP, one of the nation's leading full-service intellectual property law firms.
Outside the US, we service companies based in Japan, France, Germany, Italy, Saudi Arabia, and farther corners of the world. Our culturally aware attorneys speak many languages, including Japanese, French, German, Mandarin, Korean, Russian, Arabic, Farsi, Chinese.
Oblon's professionals provide industry-leading IP legal services to many of the world's most admired innovators and brands.
From the minute you walk through our doors, you'll become a valuable part of a team that fosters a culture of innovation, client service and collegiality.
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued final rules implementing the inventor's oath or declaration provisions of the America Invents Act (AIA) on August 14, 2012.
J. Derek Mason, Ph.D., CLP, a chemical industry IP attorney and Certified Licensing Professional, is a partner in the Chemical Patent Prosecution practice group, and chair of the IP Transactions practice group. Dr. Mason focuses his practice on patent preparation and prosecution, licensing, intellectual property issues arising in various types of corporate transactions, client counseling and opinions on various intellectual property issues.
A former chemist with a doctorate in organic chemistry, Dr. Mason works with both companies and other law firms, advising on a broad range of intellectual property concerns. He conducts due diligence investigations and risk assessment with respect to intellectual property ownership in corporate mergers and acquisitions. Additionally, he helps both foreign and domestic companies establish and develop patent portfolios, avoid infringement when launching new products, and formulate and implement procedures to protect their innovations and enhance their use and value.
Dr. Mason represents both international and domestic clients on a wide array of chemical and related technologies including medical and biotech diagnostic devices, polymers, nanotechnology, textiles, petrochemicals, and pharmaceuticals. He also counsels on creative design-around strategies, and the interplay of utility and design patents, trade-secret protection, and litigation avoidance.
Dr. Mason’s thorough understanding of the sciences and technical aspects of his clients’ innovations enables him to skillfully represent their interests. While achieving his doctorate and undergraduate degrees, Dr. Mason studied organometalloid chemistry and conducted research in the area of organic photochemistry, publishing and presenting papers in both of these areas. Prior to entering patent law, he also worked as a chemist for a diversified international chemical company.