Brand Activation Legal Committee: February 2022

For February’s meeting, attorneys from Finnegan LLP will present on the latest updates from the FTC (including recent developments with consumer reviews), NAD decisions, class action trends, Lanham Act cases, and the recent boom with the NFT/metaverse campaigns and promotions.  The presenters from Finnegan will include Anna Naydonov, Elyse McNamara, Mary Kate Brennan, and Rosie Norwood-Kelly.

Anna Naydonov, Partner, her practice focuses on trademark and false advertising litigation. She routinely litigates high-stakes cases for some of the world’s most renowned brands before federal trial and appellate courts and the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Anna has worked on winning appellate briefs, requests for injunctive relief, class certification briefs, and she has represented clients in jury and TTAB trials.

Strategic portfolio management and enforcement counseling is an important part of Anna’s practice. She serves key roles in managing extensive trademark enforcement portfolios for well-known brands, including in the apparel and food/beverage industries. Anna was selected as a DC Rising Star by the National Law Journal and as a Managing Intellectual Property (MIP) Rising Star and a Legal Media Group America’s Rising Stars award winner for copyright and trademark work. She has consistently been recognized as a Rising Star by Legal Media Group and as one of DCA Lives Rising Stars of Law: 40 Under 40.

Elyse McNamara, Associate, focuses on trademark litigation and prosecution, as well as advertising counseling. Her practice extends to a broad range of industries, including food and beverage, textiles, manufacturing, travel and leisure, and other consumer goods and services.

Elyse’s trademark and brand management practice includes trademark prosecution, portfolio management, and litigation; as well as advertising counseling and litigation, including false advertising claims. She also counsels clients on the selection, registration, maintenance, and enforcement of trademarks in the United States and globally.

Mary Kate Brennan, Associate, focuses on trademark, false advertising, and copyright litigation for a wide variety of domestic and international clients, including those in the fashion, luxury, consumer goods, and media industries. In addition to handling matters before state and federal courts and the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), she has extensive experience planning and executing multijurisdictional litigation strategies on a global scale.

Mary Kate has accrued significant courtroom experience through both government service and private practice, handling matters from inception through trial and appeal. She has first-chaired trials, prepared and argued dozens of motions, taken and defended depositions, and managed substantial discovery projects.

Rosie Norwood-Kelly, Associate, focuses on trademark litigation and prosecution as well as advertising counseling and litigation related to a broad range of industries, including apparel, consumer goods, food and beverage, and media and entertainment.

Rosie’s practice includes trademark prosecution, trademark litigation, and false advertising. She also assists with counseling clients on the selection, registration, maintenance, portfolio management, and enforcement of trademarks in the United States and abroad.