Firm: Clayton, McKay & Bailey, PC
Specialty: Intellectual Property–Patent and Trademark Prosecution and Litigation
Education: 2002 BS Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology
2012 JD, George Washington University Law School
Family: Wife, Luisa Betancourt Weinstein, Son, Maxwell Jacobo Weinstein (2 yrs), Daughter, Arianna Sofia Weinstein (1 month)
Jewish Organizations: UJFT Society of Professionals, Nadiv
Favorite Jewish Holiday: Passover
Most Memorable Personal Jewish Milestone/Life Cycle Event: Hebrew naming of my son, Ari Sariyd Chacad
Most admired Jewish lawmaker: Louis Brandeis
What trends are you noticing in intellectual property law—your field of expertise?
Increasingly, more companies, including large corporations, are seeking out intellectual property legal services from law firms that are largely virtual-based. These companies are finding that virtual firms can provide the same level of expertise and quality of work they expect from big law firms of more than 300 attorneys or intellectual property boutiques. This trend appears to be a result of the same attorneys once part of those large law firms now practicing for virtual firms and being to able charge lower fees due to the reduced overhead that comes with operating virtually (as well as remotely).
How has your understanding and/or commitment to Jewish values entered into your decisions or actions as an attorney?
The values that I have always associated with Judaism, and believe that my parents and my Rabbi tried to instill in me through religion, are integrity and respect. I chose intellectual property as my area of practice because it lends itself to objectivity, and is perhaps, as far removed from issues of integrity as any other practice of law. My clients range from large fortune 500 companies to independent inventors literally working from their garages on their inventions. From the day I started practicing law, I have always respected and been willing to listen to individuals or companies about their ideas. Providing an honest assessment of the potential of obtaining patent or trademark protection before a formal engagement is ever discussed is, in my mind, a way of showing respect, and made it an indispensable part of my practice.