Webinar: All Abroad: Insights from USPTO Attachés by Alt Legal Community

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Presenter

Deborah Lashley-Johnson

Acting Director of the IP Attaché Program

Deborah Lashley-Johnson is the Acting Director for the IP Attaché Program and previously served as the IP Attaché for the U.S. Mission to the WTO in Geneva from 2015 to 2021. She’s held several roles at the USPTO’s Office of Policy and International Affairs (OPIA), where she focused on issues at WIPO, the WTO, UNCTAD, and WHO, led the Africa IP team, and shaped policy on geographical indications and biotechnology. Ms. Lashley-Johnson holds a B.A. in International Relations from Georgetown University and a J.D. from American University’s Washington College of Law.

Jennifer Chicoski

IP Attaché for the Andean Community + Chile

Stationed in Lima, Peru, Jennifer Chicoski handles IP for Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. She’s an advocate for high standards of IP enforcement and protection and previously served as an attorney-advisor in OPIA and as an administrator for Trademark Examination Policy. Ms. Chicoski earned both a B.S. in business administration and a J.D. from Georgetown University and is admitted to practice in multiple states.

Katherine M. Hiner

IP Attaché for Sub-Sahara Africa

Katherine Hiner is based at the U.S. Consulate General in Johannesburg, where she coordinates with local authorities and industry to protect and enforce IP across sub-Saharan Africa. Formerly associate director of operations at the U.S. International Trade Commission, she’s provided IP analysis for key studies on TRIPS flexibilities and trade in Africa. Ms. Hiner holds a J.D. from Boston University School of Law and a B.A. in journalism from Ithaca College.

Cairo Jennings

IP Attaché for Mercosur

Based in Rio de Janeiro, Cairo Jennings oversees IP issues for Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Venezuela. He advises U.S. businesses on enforcement, works with foreign governments on high IP standards, and leads training and outreach efforts. Before joining the IP Attaché team, he was Senior Counsel at the U.S. Department of Commerce, a Foreign Service Officer, and an IP attorney in private practice. Mr. Jennings holds a B.S. in chemical engineering and a J.D. from the University of Texas at Austin.

Helene Liwinski

IP Attaché for the U.S. Mission to the World Trade Organization in Geneva

Helene Liwinski serves at the U.S. Mission to the World Trade Organization, focusing on TRIPS issues. She was an attorney-advisor at OPIA, covering trademark policy across the Americas, Europe, and the Middle East, and previously served as a trademark examining attorney. Ms. Liwinski holds a B.S. in chemistry from Penn State and a J.D. from Loyola University New Orleans College of Law, and she speaks French and Polish.

Conrad Wong

IP Attaché for Guangzhou, China

Conrad Wong has more than 32 years of IP experience. He is the IP Attaché in Guangzhou, focusing on IP enforcement in southern China, Hong Kong, and Macau. Previously an attorney-advisor on the USPTO’s China Team, he also served in the same attaché role from 2007 to 2012, supervised the USPTO’s Guangzhou branch, and worked as a trademark examining attorney. Mr. Wong is a graduate of Johns Hopkins University and Georgetown University Law Center.

About

U.S. IP Attachés play a vital role in helping American businesses protect and enforce their rights worldwide, serving as diplomats at embassies, consulates, or missions abroad and offering free services to help U.S. stakeholders navigate foreign laws. In this webinar, Deborah Lashley-Johnson (Acting Director for the IP Attaché Program) will moderate a panel of attachés, each serving a distinct region—from China to Mercosur, the Andean Community, sub-Saharan Africa, and multilateral work in Geneva. They’ll share how they collaborate with local governments, foreign agencies, and international organizations to troubleshoot market-entry challenges and shape global IP standards. In particular, participants will learn:
* The regions attachés cover and how they assist U.S. stakeholders
* Key trends and common pitfalls in cross-border IP enforcement
* Strategies for collaborating with foreign officials and navigating local laws
* How the attachés influence policy at multilateral organizations like the WTO and WIPO

Everyone who’s registered for this webinar will receive an email with a link to the recording.

Note: Alt Legal is NOT offering CLE credit for this webinar and will not provide certificates of attendance or otherwise help you get CLE credit for this webinar (though you may self-apply if your state allows it).