John Posthumus is a first-chair intellectual property trial litigator with extensive experience handling high-stakes trademark and trade dress infringement disputes, as well as false and misleading advertising matters. He partners with clients to protect and enforce the brands and technologies that drive their businesses through strategic litigation and intellectual property counseling. For close to two decades, John has earned consistent recognition from Chambers as a leading intellectual property litigator in Colorado and has been named among Colorado Super Lawyers' Top 100 Lawyers.

John’s practice spans a broad range of industries, including telecommunications infrastructure, automotive, consumer products, hospitality, commercial real estate, franchising and manufacturing. Since 1998, he has served as lead trademark enforcement counsel for an international real estate company, leading the company’s trademark, unfair competition and related intellectual property matters. He regularly serves as first-chair counsel in jury and bench trials in federal courts across the United States, representing clients in some of their most significant intellectual property disputes.

John is also a respected leader within the local, national and international intellectual property bar. As Chair of the Colorado Bar Association's Intellectual Property Section, he worked with U.S. Senator Michael Bennet to draft what became Section 23, the "Satellite Offices" provision of the America Invents Act. He later led the Colorado team that successfully secured one of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's satellite offices for Colorado. Today, John serves as Chair of the International Amicus Committee of the International Trademark Association, where he leads the organization's amicus efforts before courts around the world, including the U.S. Supreme Court.

Beyond his legal practice, John has been a leader and advocate in Colorado’s developmental disability community. He served on the Board of Directors for Disability Law Colorado for more than 11 years, including four years as Vice President and President. During his tenure, he secured funding to establish and sustain a full-time attorney position responsible for investigating unlawful restraint incidents involving school age children with disabilities in public schools and providing training to help prevent the same.

Education

  • University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law (J.D., 1991)
    • University of Colorado Boulder (B.S., 1987)
      • Business Administration, emphasis on Corporate Finance
    • University of Colorado Boulder (B.S., 1987)
      • Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

    Bar Admission

    • Colorado, 1991
    • Admitted to practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office, 1992

    Court Admissions

    • U.S. District Court, District of Colorado
    • Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals
    • Federal Circuit Court of Appeals

    Professional Affiliations

     Leadership

    • International Trademark Association, Committee and Leadership Roles, 2004-Present
      • Chair, International Amicus Committee for the 2026-2027 Term
      • Vice-Chair, International Amicus Committee for the 2024-2025 Term
      • Chair, US Amicus Subcommittee of the International Amicus Committee for the 2022-2023 Term
      • Member, US Amicus Subcommittee of the International Amicus Committee for the 2018-2019, 2020-2021 Terms
    • State of Colorado, Office of Economic Development, Member, Advance Industries Electronics Committee, 2020-Present
    • Colorado Bar Association
      • Foundation Fellow, 2011-Present
      • Intellectual Property Section Chair, 2010-2011
      • Vice Chair, 2009-2010
      • Secretary & Treasurer, 2008-2009
    • Founding Member, Colorado Intellectual Property American Inn of Court, 2010
    • Appointed to Special Task Force that Harmonized the Model State Trademark Bill with the Federal Trademark Dilution Revision Act, 2007

    Philanthropy

    • Disability Law Colorado
      • Member, Board of Directors and Executive Committee, 2008-2017
      • President of the Board, 2014-2015
      • Vice President of the Board, 2012-2013

    Recognition

    • Selected for inclusion in IAM's Global Leaders list, United States: Colorado, 2026
    • Managing Intellectual Property, IP Stars – Notable Practitioner, 2024-2026
    • World Trademark Review’s 1000 List, Silver - Colorado, 2023-2026
    • Ranked in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business for the following:
      • Intellectual Property, Colorado, Senior Statespeople, 2021-2026
      • Intellectual Property, Colorado, Band 1, 2018-2020
      • Intellectual Property, Colorado, Band 2 and 3, 2009-2017
    • Selected to Top 100 Colorado Lawyers by Super Lawyers (2012-2021)
    • Named to 5280 Magazine “Denver’s Top Lawyers” list for Intellectual Property: Litigation, 2012-2026
    • Selected for inclusion in IAM Patent 1000 “Global Leaders Guide,” 2021
    • Selected for inclusion in Best Lawyers in America® for:
      • Litigation - Intellectual Property, 2026
      • Litigation - Patent, 2018-2026
    • Selected for inclusion in the IAM Patent 1000 list of the World's Leading Patent Practitioners, 2019-2021, 2024-2026, Colorado - Gold Litigation
    • Awarded 2015 Metropolitan Cooperation Award by Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation
    • Linn Inn Distinguished Service Medal, 2013
    • Awarded “Top Thinker” in the Business category by The Denver Post, 2012
    • Lawyer of the Year by Law Week Colorado, 2012
    • Runner-Up The Denver Post Business Leader of the Year, 2012
    • Awarded Powerbook Industry Leader in Law Category by Denver Business Journal, 2012
    • Recognized by Denver Business Journal “People to Watch,” 2012
    • Martindale-Hubbell AV® Preeminent™