Intellectual Property Consultants: 45

David Smith is an experienced mechanical engineer (MS, PE) with seven issued patents. Award-winning inventor. Vice President of Alpine Engineering and Design, a mechanical engineering consulting company with clients around the United States ranging from individual inventors to Fortune 500 companies. Worked on the development of multiple successful products including among other things: aerial lifts, garbage trucks, thrill rides, ziplines, trailers, oil and gas equipment, exercise equipment, manufacturing equipment, and multiple consumer products. 

Graduated Cum Laude with a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering. Completed a master's of science degree in mechanical engineering and an MBA with an emphasis in product development. Licensed professional engineer (PE) and certified safety professional in comprehensive practice (CSP). Certified trainer for boom lifts, scissor lifts, rough terrain, and counterbalanced forklifts. Over 10 years of experience in product development, patents, equipment safety, and risk assessments. 

Experienced expert witness having drafted over 200 reports/declarations in patent cases and catastrophic injury and death cases. Designed and built multiple custom testing devices to obtain data and evaluate opinions. Created multiple demonstratives to explain the mechanics and circumstances of accident sequences and patented devices. Testified in deposition 11 times and in trial once.

Expert Witness Services Professional Expert Reports Testing Forensic/Failure Analysis Accident Reconstruction Demonstratives Inspections/Measurements Compliance with Standards Expert Testimony Patent & Patent Related Issues Patent Searches Provisional Patent Complete with Illustrations Patent Infringement Review

Product Development Innovative Concept Multi-Industry Experience Powerful Design Tools Full Service Fabricating Materials Design Analysis Finite Element Analysis (FEA) Hydraulics, Pneumatics, Electrical Structural Integrity Tests Value Analysis

FORENSIC EXPERT WITNESS - PHOTOGRAPHY

Professor Jeff Sedlik has decades of experience at the highest level of professional photography including advertising, corporate, editorial and stock. He is a respected and acknowledged authority on photography having served as Past National President of professional photography's leading trade organization,  "Advertising Photographers of America". Professor Sedlik is also an experienced Expert Witness. 

Areas of Expertise:

Contracts Copyright Licensing Publicity Rights Model Releases

Lost/Damaged Film Stock Photography Business Practices Forensic Scene Recreation Forensic Image Analysis

ATech Designs, Inc. is a five-time award winning Product Development, Design and Consulting company. They have worked with clients in many different fields of work including the Medical Product Device Design and Development industry. The types of medical products ATech Designs, Inc. has developed include medical disposables, medical devices, laparoscopic devices, anastomotic connectors, catheters, intravenous (IV) devices, mitral valve repair devices, non-invasive surgical instruments, and knitted multi-pole pockets for RF endometrial ablation. Services Include:

Product Design and Development Machine Design Polymer Selection Detail Drafting Finite Element Analysis (FEA) Manufacturing FACTTM Molding

Product Assembly Product Testing Root Cause Analysis / Dynamic Mechanical Analysis Animal Studies Clinical Studies Expert Court Witness Design Prototyping

Karl R. Leinsing, MSME, PE, President of Atech Designs, Inc., is a Professional Mechanical Engineer who specializes in Medical Device Product Development from concept to production. Mr. Leinsing has been granted over 20 patents (needle free IV valves, laparoscopic devices, needlescopic devices, suture lockers, catheters, mitral valve repair devices, knitting machines) and excels in solving the most complicated problems and design challenges. The winner of five design awards, Mr. Leinsing is recognized as one of the top 100 medical device professionals in the nation by MD&DI. For dedication to his industry, he was made the 2014 Chairman of the Medical Device and Manufacturing Conference in Anaheim, CA. Mr. Leinsing has also been acknowledged for his work in a publication by Life Magazine.

View Karl Leinsing's Expert Witness Profile.

Michael Nranian, JD, MBA, MS has over 30 years experience focusing in Product Development, Intellectual Property, Patent Litigation, Legal and Technical Compliance, and Product Liability Litigation. He is a licensed attorney in Michigan, Texas, & the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Mr. Nranian is a Six Sigma Black Belt, Professional Engineer, & Certified Project Management Professional. He has an in-depth background and education in Law, IP, Electrical, Chemical & Computer Engineering, & Business. He has testified extensively as an expert witness in depositions, hearings, and trials in state & federal courts.

Mr. Nranian conducts Product and Technology Analysis, Patentability & Prior Art Research,and provides Technology & Litigation Support for Intellectual Property. His litigation background includes patent infringement / non-infringement under literal infringement and the doctrine of equivalents, patent validity / invalidity, prior art, & file-wrapper estoppel, for both ITC and Federal cases, including Inter Partes reviews. He conducts analysis of patents and products, prepares claim charts, & expert witness reports. This includes testimony and document preparation for cases before state, and federal court jurisdictions, and the International Trade Commission and the Patent Trial and Appeal Board.

Mr. Nranian is thoroughly familiar with all 101, 102, 103, 112, and other enablement and prior art arguments. His experience includes Technology Standards Boards and Licensing Authorities, Antitrust / DOJ, Technology Development and Transfer, Patents, Trademarks, Trade Secrets, and Copyrights, Licensing, Unfair Competition/Trade, False/Deceptive Advertising, & Lanham Act Actions, & Class Actions.

His Product Liability Expert Witness litigation background includes all types of Safety Systems, Electrical Systems, Fires, Accident Reconstruction, and Evaluation of Alternative Designs for Automotive, Medical and other industries. He has over 29 years of experience in Automotive Safety Systems, Sensors, Seatbelts, Airbags / Curtains, Seats, Diagnostic Systems, Crash Recorders, Crash Pulse Analysis, System Diagnostic, Fault Codes, Structure (including roof-crush and door) and front, side & roll-over systems (including sensing and algorithm development) for domestic and international corporations. He is thoroughly familiar with all regulatory (including FMVSS), and corporate due-care requirements, & preemption arguments, occupant kinematics, & injury causation.

Rob Wallace has unique expertise in Trademark, Trade Dress, Copyright, Brand Identity and Package Design Infringement. For 30+ years, Rob ran one of the nation's top Brand Identity Strategy and Package Design Resources providing global branding expertise to Fortune 500 companies in virtually all CPG categories. His clients include P&G, Nestle, Pepsico, Unilever, Kraft, Colgate, The Home Depot, Brown-Foreman, Novartis, J&J and more than 30 market leading companies. Manhattan-based, Rob has been an expert witness for important litigation involving:

• Likelihood of Consumer Confusion, Brand Valuation & Dilution
• Innovation/Ideation Copyright
• Package Graphic/Structural Design
• Product Design
• Branding Industry Best Practices
• False Advertising
• Corrective Advertising
• and all brand related issues.

Rob has commissioned literally hundreds of consumer surveys and is uniquely qualified to determine the results of all research.

He has worked for attorneys on both the plaintiff and defense sides of his cases. He is effective and efficient with the average project report requiring between 10 and 12 hours.

Biernath Consulting, Inc., helps small companies assess how AI and other advanced sciences & technologies can help grow their business, then helps them create and implement inventive solutions to achieve that. 

Rolf Biernath, PhD in Chemical Engineering, has over 35 years in the Chemicals and Electronics Industries with a concentration on AI & advanced technology new product development. He developed new products and product lines at 3M for 31 years in senior technical roles.  His 57 issued US patents span a broad range of scientific and engineering disciplines. He has a strong drive to find the simplest and most effective solutions that meet customer needs and business objectives.  His broad technical background and his resourceful ability to learn new fields quickly make him an ideal partner to help turn product "hunches" into fully realized new products and services.  If it can be done, he'll find the way.  If not, he'll tell you why, and let you know what advances might enable it in the future.

Rolf also works with VC and Angel Investors to assess a startup's new technology odds of technical and business success.  He is known for his ability to break down complex technical problems and find the critical aspects that will make or break a new product.  This helps investors ensure that financial investments are used to target the highest risks first, thereby reducing the money and time wasted chasing after products that may likely never see the light of day.

Consultant Specialties:

New Product Innovation Manufacturing Innovation Generative AI Prompt Engineering Root Cause Identification Automation Chemical Engineering

Smart Devices IoT Devices IIoT Sensors Electromechanical Assemblies

Background Experience - Dr. Biernath has 57 Issued US Patents on New Products, including:

• Industrial Adhesives and Tapes – 3D printing materials development, automation, and tape application processes
• Electronic Displays – optical display films, outdoor digital displays, backlights, LED color mixing, e-Paper
• Electronic Materials – epoxy thermoset adhesives & application process (elastomeric epoxy), high speed electronic connectors
• Signage – retroreflective signage, license plate recognition, ADAS, Human Invisible, Machine-Readable Coding System
• IoT and IIoT – Automatic and predictive selection and replacement of controllers; novel low-cost oil-detection sensor
• Microreplication – microfluidics, textured adhesives and processes

View Dr. Rolf Biernath's Expert Witness Profile.

Peter Crosby has over 45 years experience in the medical device industry. He has served as CEO of six medical device companies in four countries (public and private), and brought many products to the world market through clinical trials and regulatory approval.

Through Biomedical Business Resources LLC, he provides many services including:

• Advisory - helping clients with strategy, operations, execution, and business building\
• Mentoring, especially first time CEOs
• Expert Witness - assisting attorneys with multiple expert reports, depositions, and testimony at trial and arbitration. Cases include disputes about intellectual property , product liability, and commercial contracts
• Board Services - offering Independent Board Member services for companies, public or private, with experience in building companies, and helping management teams in times of high growth and rapid change

Mr. Crosby's product experience includes implantable devices (cochlear implants, cardiac pacemakers, implantable defibrillators, artificial heart, neurostimulation), in vitro diagnostics, imaging (ultrasound and X-ray), software, AEDs, and patient monitoring. His clinical domain experience includes ophthalmology, otolaryngology, cardiac surgery, cardiology, orthopedics, pain management, anesthesia and intensive care.

View Peter Crosby's Expert Witness Profile.

Blue Silk Consulting specializes in Global Supply Chain Processes and Technology Enablement. We are a consulting firm, with 80+ clients and over 25 years of consulting experience in Supply Chain Management, Project Management, Systems Consulting, and Expert Witness Services. With global and domestic clients, Rosemary Coates has extensive knowledge and experience in manufacturing and outsourcing to China, and in global manufacturing strategies such as reshoring production. Rosemary Coates' experience spans a broad range of industries including:

High Technology Software Chemicals Health Care Consumer Products Industrial Products Apparel and Footwear

Counterfeit Imports Food Distribution Transportation Publishing Retail Oil and Gas Automotive

Rosemary Coates, President of Blue Silk Consulting and the Executive Director of the Reshoring Institute. She is a seasoned executive with an MBA and 25+ years of experience in Chinese Sourcing and Manufacturing, Global Supply Chain Management, Reshoring, Procurement, Manufacturing and ERP Systems Consulting. Background Experience. 

Prior to BSC, Ms. Coates was a Senior Director at SAP, the Supply Chain Practice Leader at KPMG Peat Marwick and at Answerthink, and a Regional Manager at Hewlett-Packard. Ms. Coates has consulted with global and domestic clients, VCs, and PE firms on operations systems and processes. She has considerable international experience and has worked for extended periods in Asia and Europe. 

Ms. Coates' experience spans a broad range of industries including High Technology, Software, Chemicals, Health Care, Consumer Products, Industrial Products, Food Distribution, Transportation, Publishing, Retail, and Oil and Gas. She has extensive knowledge and experience in manufacturing and outsourcing in Asia, Europe, and the US. She has written five Amazon.com books including Best Seller 42 Rules for Sourcing and Manufacturing in China, and Legal Blacksmith: How to Avoid and Defend Supply Chain Disputes, and  42 Rules for Superior Field Service, and Negotiation Blueprint for Buyers, and The Reshoring Guidebook. 

Ms. Coates is also the Executive Director of the Reshoring Institute and a member of the Board of Directors at the University of San Diego Supply Chain Management Institute, and a Member of the Board at Kinectic River. She teaches Global Supply Chain Strategy at UC Berkeley. She is a Licensed U.S. Customs Broker. She earned a BS in Business at Arizona State University and an MBA at the University of San Diego. She resides in Silicon Valley.

Rosemary Coates: Supply Chain Management Overview

Areas of Expertise:

Chinese Products / Chinese Imports Counterfeit Imports Chinese Manufacturing Importing and Exporting Electronics Purchasing Operations Planning

Inventory Warehousing Supply Chain Distribution Channel Manufacturing Operations Field Service Supply Contracts ERP Systems Implementations

View Rosemary Coates' Expert Witness Profile.

BTI Appraisal is a broad-based appraisal company which provides a consistently high level of Real Estate Appraisals, Business Valuations, and Machinery and Equipment Appraisals for Business, Professional, Public and Private Sectors. When you choose BTI Appraisal, you benefit from a strong tradition of experience and accuracy. 

A corporate philosophy stressing efficiency and attentive service has made BTI a leader among independent appraisers. They are proud of our reputation for stability, responsiveness, and accomplishment in and out of the courtroom. At BTI, their seasoned staff of success-oriented professionals treats each assignment with precise attention to detail, providing needed research and responsive service on a wide range of appraisal needs.

Appraisal Services:

• Real Estate:  Valuation, Research, and  Technical Capabilities from homes to high rise office buildings of all sizes and in most locations. BTI can determine value for either “as is” or “as proposed” construction as well as Market Analysis and Feasibility Studies, Construction Defects, Lost Profits Analysis, Property Tax Reductions, Lack of Disclosure or Misrepresentation
• Personal Property: Residential Contents, Automobiles, Works of Art or Collectibles, Private Planes, Yachts, Inventory for Insurance Coverage, Loans, Sales, Donations, and Litigation Purposes
• Business Valuation: BTI is often called upon to appraise business entities for a variety of purposes Bankruptcy, Eminent Domain, Estate Planning, Dispute Resolution, Loan Support, Marital or Corporate Dissolutions, Mergers, Purchase or Sale
• Machinery and Equipment: BTI's diverse experience in appraising all types of machinery and equipment extends to leasehold improvements, furniture, fixtures and other tangible assets, and a wide range of specialized machinery and equipment including Lasers, Food Processing & Packaging Assembly lines, Cranes, Medical Equipment, Agricultural Equipment, Photography Equipment, Telecommunications Equipment
• Financial Analysis: Sales, profits and expenses often need to be projected, or analyzed, based on external events that trigger losses or gains. BTI regularly performs this type of work for a wide variety of business types.They also analyze contract disputes that financially impact the parties.Commercial creditors even use BTI’s services to analyze and value accounts receivable and related assets that secure their loans to operating businesses.

BTI’s Founder and Chairman, Ben F. Tunnell III, has headed the firm since 1974. Previously, he spent eight years with First Interstate Bank of California as vice president at their corporate headquarters in Los Angeles. He served on the board of arbitrators for both the American Arbitration Association and the Better Business Bureau. He has also been a Registered Investment Advisor and Broker/Dealer with the Securities and Exchange Commission and a licensed, California Real Estate Broker. Mr. Tunnell is an ASA, the senior designation of the American Society of Appraisers, and a California Certified General Real Estate Appraiser #AG-6964. 

View Ben Tunnell's Expert Witness Profile.

Brooks Hilliard, CMC, CCP is the only actively practicing expert witness in the world who is both a Certified Management Consultant and a Certified Computing Professional specializing in computer system selection and problem resolution. He has testified more than 30 times as a computer expert witness and has been engaged on more than 90 such matters for both plaintiffs and defendants. Mr. Hillard has done expert witness and consulting assignments in 25 states, and has qualified as an expert witness on computer software and hardware (including ERP, SCM and CRM systems) in both state and federal litigation. His expert witness engagements have included courtroom and deposition testimony in lawsuits, arbitrations, mediations and formal governmental hearings. 

Areas of Expertise:

• Allegations of ERP and CRM system failures and/or defective business software/systems
• Computer Forensics
• Intellectual property
• Valuation of computer hardware, software and services
• Regulatory, Procurement and Tax matters

Durand R. Begault received a PhD in Computer Audio from UC San Diego in 1988 and an MFA from Mills College in 1981. He has been associated with the Audio Forensic Center and Charles M. Salter Associates, Inc. since 1996 and has worked as an expert witness, legal consultant, and acoustical consultant on a variety of audio-related cases since 1988. Dr. Begault also holds a research position at NASA Ames Research Center and is an adjunct faculty member at McGill University. He is the author of several U.S. patents and is qualified as an expert witness in both Federal and State Courts. Dr. Begault has testified in over 40 cases on a variety of audio technology and forensic audio-related cases.

Areas of Expertise:

• Audio Technology Patent / Intellectual Property Analyses
• Forensic Audio and Video Tape Examination / Authentication
• Analysis of Speech, Alarms, Warning Signal Audibility
• Voice Identification and Elimination
• Analysis of ‘Ear Witness’ Testimony
• Enhancement of Speech from Noisy Audio / Video Tape Recordings
• Music Copyright Infringement and Musicological Analysis
• Gunshots
• Acoustical Test and Measurement - Environmental Sound
• Noise Exposure
• Software / Hardware Black Box Testing for Infringement
• Videotape Image Enhancement
• Analysis of Digital Recordings

Please contact the Marketing Department at Charles M. Salter Associates, Inc./Audio Forensic Center for Dr. Begault’s current CV.

View Expert Witness Profile.

Howard J. Cohen, PhD, has over 30 years of experience in Software Engineering, Architecture and Implementation. He possesses particular expertise in Algorithms, Relational Databases, Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs) and Software Applications in general. His experience has been in a broad spectrum of technology, in several languages, in a wide variety of applications, and on multiple platforms. Dr. Cohen's background includes Electronic Design Automation, Bioinformatics, Digital Cartography, Banking Systems for Foreign Exchange Traders, and many more. He is the co-inventor on approximately 120 patents.

Since 1979, Dr. Cohen has served as a Software Development Consultant to several major Silicon Valley businesses including Nortel Networks, Surromed, Incyte Genomics, BomDiver, Canon Information Systems, WeatherNews, PetroSoft, LSI Logic, Aspect Development, Abbott Laboratories, ETAK, Engineering DataXpress, Nikon Precision, Diasonics, Daisy Systems, Rolm, Oceanroutes, Mindcraft, and Integrated CMOS Systems. Concurrently, he has also held full time senior engineering and management positions with such companies as Tibco, Zycad, ETAK, and the NASA Ames Research Center.

Dr. Cohen's Consulting Services are available to companies needing software development involving problem definition, analysis, design modeling, documentation, programming, and implementation. Consulting services are also available issues regarding Trade Secrets, Copyright and Patent Infringement, and Computer Software Security and Forensics.

View Expert Witness Profile

Carlo Scevola & Partners is an International Fiduciary Company headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, with branches in six continents. We specialize in International Planning, Strategic Consulting and Wealth Management. Our clients trust us for everything from setting up an Offshore Company to Mergers and Acquisitions to Business Finance and Asset Protection. 

CS&P’s customer-centric methodology ensures that each client gets a custom-tailored solution which addresses that business’ individual objectives and requirements. Our team has expertise in every functional category and every important geography. From finance to operations to human resources to marketing – from the Americas to Europe to Africa, Asia and Oceania – CS&P can bring together experienced executives who know how to advise you and will make your enterprise a success. All this while always protecting your privacy. 

Services Offered: Business and Strategic Consulting

• S.W.O.T. Analysis
• Pre-investment Feasibility Studies / Competitive Background Assessments
• Business Plan Research, Writing and Production
• Strategy Definition / Implementation
• Reworking of Operating Processes for International Suitability
• Industrial Partnership Scouting / Matching
• Tailor Business Model to Market Environment, Jurisdiction and Local Authorities Requirements 

Corporate Finance:

• Mergers, Acquisitions and CessionsCommercial Due Diligence or Investment / Financial Appraisals
• Company Reorganization and Restructuring
• Financial Feasibility Plans for Industrial Expansion
• Scouting / Recruiting Highly Qualified Financial Management
• Exit Strategies in the event of Buy-outs, Buy-ins, Spin-offs or MBOs, MBIs and LBOs
• Listing on Stock Exchanges 

Offshore Consulting:

1. International Tax Planning
2. Corporate Structuring, Maintenance and Trusts
3. International Contracts Law
4. Jurisdictions
5. Residency and Citizenship
6. International Banking
7. Logistic Support
8. Government Licenses
9. Aircrafts and Vessels
10. Intellectual Property 

CS&P Operates In More Than 80 Countries Around The World.

DireenTech is a Design and Systems Development firm in the Electronics and Software Industry. They are currently under contract with the US Air Force Academy Center for UAS Research, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering in the area of using General Purpose Graphics Processing Units (GPGPU) in UAVs / Drones to provide fast autonomous target identification and GPS denied navigation. DireenTech has also partnered with FalconWorks and Falci Adaptive Motor sports on the NeuroGroove program to develop technologies to help those with neuromotor disabilities, including U.S. veterans, increase their ability to control and interact with their environment.

Core Services

• Software Design and Development
• Electronic Hardware Design and Development
• Research using GPGPUs for Control, Navigation and Image Processing
• Intellectual Property
• Reverse Engineering Hardware, Software, and Firmware
• Product Forensics

Chief Operating officer, Harry Direen, PhD, PE has over 30 years of experience as an engineer Designing and Developing Systems in the Electronics and Software Industry. He has taught engineering courses at the US Air Force Academy and at the University of Colorado. Dr. Direen currently works with a research group at the US Air Force Academy developing control systems and image processing using GPGPUs for UAVs. An inventor, he holds 3 United States patents. Dr. Direen has a broad base of knowledge in electronic and software systems gained from a long career developing a wide range of products and systems. He has reverse engineered a variety of complex systems over the years, including: media players, modems, modem compression algorithms, coriolis mass flow meters, database systems, and a range of other products to support patent infringement cases generating detailed claim charts and writing expert reports to demonstrate infringement. Dr. Direen has successfully discovered and analyzed complex digital signal processing algorithms and pertinent operations within these products for many years.

View Dr. Direen's Expert Witness Profile.

Reasoning, Inc. provides expert testimony for trademarks, defamation, authorship attribution, and communicative malpractice related to faulty tests and surveys. Reasoning is a group of doctoral-level linguists and logicians with superior understanding of all aspects of language. We do linguistic and logical analyses of publications, newspapers, books, letters, interviews, advertisements, manuals, contracts--to identify meanings, inferences, innuendoes, bias, actual malice, damage to reputation, similarity to other documents, copyright infringement, plagiarism, breach of contract, authorship, and fraud.

As a specialist in educational testing, Dr. Habick provides expert testimony on educational practices related to fairness, bias, psychometrics, and flawed test questions or testing programs. He provides Linguistic Analysis of news reports and other communications and in the assessment of Violations of Legal, Ethical, and Professional Standards.

Dr. Habick testified as an expert witness in linguistics in the U.S. District Court, Trenton, in The United States of America v. Tyshon Bey. Dr. Habick performed linguistic analyses on defamation and trademark cases for Pisanelli-Bice, Las Vegas; Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, Tampa; Seed Intellectual Property Law Group, Seattle, and Perkins Coie, Seattle.

Reasoning, Inc. also provided expert testimony on unfair testing, grading, and educational practices for Seals v. State of Mississippi et al.

Areas of Expertise:

Libel Defamation Slander Trademarks Invasion of Privacy Copyright Infringement Discourse Analysis Logical Analysis Logically Flawed Argumentation

Plagiarism Education Educational Examinations Bias and Fairness Psychometrics Authorship Identification Interpretation of Contracts Taped Conversations

Professional Affiliations
American Dialect Society (ADS)
International Association of Forensic Linguists (IAFL)