Adam S. Weiss represents small businesses and large corporations, as well as both plaintiffs and defendants, to secure, protect, monetize and litigate all types of intellectual property rights.
Adam honed his style and strategies while working with leading companies and their largest brands. He was instrumental as one of the lead counsel in an ITC case in which the Commission first recognized common law trade dress rights. Adam recently won a first-of-its-kind patent infringement case, invalidating all asserted patents under the Alice doctrine, despite the fact that some of the asserted patents had been examined and issued after the Patent Office’s interim Alice guidance. He has a proven record of efficient and favorable client results in Federal court and before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.
Adam’s experience as both outside and in-house counsel provides a unique and diverse business perspective and valuable insight into his client's needs, which contributes to well-rounded and practical advice. His experience on either side of the courtroom enables him to better understand his opponents’ strategy, which allows for successful and efficient resolutions. As an Adjunct Professor teaching intellectual property research and writing courses, Adam further developed the ability to present and explain complex problems simply and clarify issues for optimal positioning. Regardless of a matter’s scale or substance, clients quickly learn that they can depend on Adam’s responsiveness, attention to detail, and thorough planning.
Adam has hands on experience partnering with Chicago’s entrepreneurial and startup community, where he has been a long time member and contributor of Hyde Park Angels, and serves on the Advisory Board of the Chicago-Kent Entrepreneurship Program.
Education
- Chicago-Kent College of Law (J.D., 1998)
- with honors
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (B.S., 1995)
- Chemical Engineering
Bar Admission
- Illinois, 1998
- Admitted to practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office
Court Admissions
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois, 1998
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit, 2015
Professional Affiliations
- American Bar Association
- Intellectual Property Law Section
- Special Committee on Trademarks and the Internet, Sub-Committee Co-Chair
- Intellectual Property Law Section
- Chicago-Kent Entrepreneurship Program Advisory Board
- Hyde Park Angels
- International Trademark Association
- Anti-Counterfeiting Committee
- RK Ventures
Recognition
- World Trademark Review's 1000 List, Bronze - Illinois, 2024-2026
- Selected for inclusion in Best Lawyers in America® for Trademark Law, 2023-2024
- Judicial Intern for the Honorable Richard S. Kelly, Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois
- Chicago-Kent College of Law, Four years as Adjunct Professor (Advanced Legal Drafting/Research, Intellectual Property)
- Selected for inclusion in the 2018 Trade Marks Expert Guides.
