Brian Focarino

Brian is a trademark, copyright, and advertising lawyer whose practice sits at the intersection of reputation and creativity. He represents established and emerging companies across the globe on their most consequential IP matters and teaches trademark law at Suffolk Law School.

As trusted counsel for iconic brands and high-growth companies across industries and geographies, Brian handles complex matters that span trademarks, trade dress, copyright, false advertising, unfair competition, cybersquatting and counterfeiting.  He advises on worldwide brand selection and protection, delivers strategic counsel on IP enforcement and disputes, builds and manages global IP portfolios, and guides clients through corporate IP transactions and diligence.  When companies face strategic inflections or critical business decisions, they turn to Brian to secure, scale and unlock the full value of their most important IP assets.

Beyond his practice, Brian is an active member of the International Trademark Association (INTA), where he serves on the Pro Bono Committee.

An alumnus of the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity Pathfinder program, Brian continues to champion equitable opportunity in the profession and helps lead Cooley’s efforts to attract and advance exceptional, underrepresented legal talent as a member of the firm's diversity committee.

Before Cooley, Brian gained experience in the legal departments at Google and Verizon as a trademark and copyright legal intern, and as a legal intern for Chief Judge Randall R. Rader of the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.  In law school, Brian was awarded the Warnement Scholarship in Intellectual Property Law and served as president of the Student Intellectual Property Society, executive editor of the William & Mary Business Law Review, and as a member of the Appellate and Supreme Court Clinic.

Brian currently serves as president of the Alumni Association at William & Mary, where he earned both his undergraduate and law degrees.

Publications and citations

• Author, “Volunteer Spotlight: Peter Brody, Ropes & Gray,” INTA Bulletin, December 1, 2018
• Author, “Committee Spotlight: Leadership Development – Diverse Messengers With Diverse Messages,” INTA Bulletin, October 15, 2018
• Author, “Committee Spotlight: Impact Studies Committee Hits Its Stride,” INTA Bulletin, July 2, 2018
• Author, “Tackling ‘Tokenism’ in Legal Departments and Law Firms (It’s Not Just a Virtual Currency),” Association of Corporate Counsel, March 26, 2018
• Author, “C-Suite Executives More Aware of Trademark Portfolio Risk and Reward,” IPWatchdog, April 18, 2017
• Author, “Disparaging Marks: The Question of Offensiveness,” World Trademark Review, January 2, 2017
• Co-author (with John W. Crittenden), “Supreme Court to Consider ‘Disparaging’ Trademarks,” IPWatchdog, October 2, 2016
• Author, “Trader Joe’s and Extraterritorial Application of the Lanham Act,” IPWatchdog, September 21, 2016
• Author, “Associates Can Lead Diversity Efforts, Too (Perspective),” Bloomberg Law, July 1, 2016
• Author, “Brand Owners Watch as Smoke Clears on Plain Packaging Efforts,” IPWatchdog, June 16, 2016
• Author, “Social Media and the Rise of Opportunistic #Trademark Filings,” IPWatchdog, April 14, 2016
• Co-author (with John W. Crittenden), “Federal Circuit Strikes Ban on ‘Disparaging’ Trademarks,” Cooley, December 29, 2015
• Author, “Napa Valley Vintners First Wine Group in US to Receive Certification Mark Registration,” IPWatchdog, December 27, 2015
• Author, “Unconstitutional – CAFC Rules PTO Cannot Deny Registration for Disparaging Trademarks,” IPWatchdog, December 23, 2015
• Co-author (with Renée C. Quinn), “‘Happy Birthday to You’ Now in the Public Domain (Sort Of),” IPWatchdog, October 28, 2015
• Author, “Trademark Tea Leaves: Balancing Product Secrecy With Public Trademark Registration,” IPWatchdog, October 8, 2015
• Author, “To the Batmobile! Copyright Saves the Day in Gotham City,” IPWatchdog, September 24, 2015
• Author, “Dancing Baby Center Of Test Case Over Bad DMCA Takedowns,” IPWatchdog, September 21, 2015
• Author, “The Trademark as a Novel Innovation Index,” The Report (New York Intellectual Property Law Association), August/September 2015
• Author, “Big Tobacco Heads to Court Over Cigarette Plain Packaging Laws,” IPWatchdog, July 19, 2015
• Author, “Bad News for the Redskins Trademark – Registration Exempt From First Amendment Scrutiny,” IPWatchdog, July 14, 2015
• Author, “Free Speech or Scandal? The Slants Case and the Future of Disparaging Trademarks,” IPWatchdog, July 5, 2015
• Author, “The Trademark as a Novel Innovation Index,” Pepperdine Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law, June 25, 2015
• Author, “Patent Law’s Unexceptional Future,” Journal of the Patent and Trademark Office Society, April 30, 2015

 Media and podcasts

• Speaker on practicing trademark, copyright, intellectual property and related areas of law, “Making Connections in Boston’s IP Community,” Boston Patent Law Association, February 2020
• Quoted, “Arch-Conservative Political Pundit Obtains ‘Media Malpractice’ Trademark,” IPWatchdog, October 3, 2016
• Guest, Episode 332: Drones Without Borders, “This Week in Law” podcast, January 8, 2016
• Quoted, “Trademarks May Make for a Better Innovation Index in China,” World Trademark Review, July 15, 2015

Panels and presentations

• Invited moderator, “Visit America’s National Marks!,” INTA Annual Meeting, Houston, Texas, November 2020
• Guest lecturer, Trademark Law Course, William & Mary Law School, Williamsburg, Virginia, April 16, 2020
• Panelist, “Making Connections in Boston’s IP Community,” Boston Patent Law Association, Boston, Massachusetts, February 4, 2020
• Panelist, “Navigating Disruptive Technologies,” American Bar Association IP West Conference, Long Beach, California, October 11, 2017
• Moderator, “Nominative Fair Use: How Much Is Too Much?,” INTA Annual Meeting, Barcelona, Spain, May 24, 2017
• Panelist, “Geek Law 101: Intellectual Property Law Basics,” Silicon Valley Comic Con, March 20, 2016