Intellectual Property Symposium

Dahlia George first joined the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in January 2005 as a Trademark Examining Attorney.  In January 2008, she joined the USPTO Office of General Law where she investigated and prosecuted EEOC complaints, grievances, and Merit Systems Protection Bureau appeals. She also responded to subpoenas for Government witnesses and documents, investigated Federal Tort Claims Act claims and IG inquiries, and handled Reasonable Accommodation requests for legal sufficiency.  In addition, she was the USPTO FOIA Officer.  Since January 2011 to the present, she joined the USPTO Office of Enrollment and Discipline where she investigates grievances and complaints alleging misconduct by patent and trademark practitioners; conducts moral character and “fitness to practice” applications for individuals seeking registration before the USPTO; and heads the Diversion Pilot Program for impaired practitioners.

Carolyn Kosowski is a Senior Legal Advisor in the Office of Patent Legal Administration at the USPTO.  In this position, she assists in the drafting of rule packages, memoranda, and associated guidance to implement USPTO initiatives and comply with developments in patent law including subject matter eligibility, designs and 35 USC 112.  Prior to joining the Office of Patent Legal Administration, she was a primary patent examiner and examined patent applications related to network security and business method technologies.  Previously, she worked as a patent agent and attorney for a large general practice law firm in Washington, DC.  Carolyn received her B.S. in Systems Engineering from the University of Virginia and her J.D. from the George Washington University Law School.

Patrick Njeim focuses his practice on patent preparation and prosecution, due diligence matters, infringement and validity opinions, portfolio analysis, patent litigation, and post-grant proceedings. He represents clients in a wide range of technology areas, including artificial intelligence, virtual reality, augmented reality, computer software and hardware, virtualization and cloud computing, networking, wireless communications, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, medical devices, and various related technologies.

Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Njeim worked as an associate in the Seattle office of a national law firm. Previously, he worked for Boeing Commercial Airplanes for six years where he developed broad experience in systems engineering. In his most recent position with Boeing as Customer Engineer, Mr. Njeim managed airline accounts in Europe and Africa where he was responsible for negotiating, configuring, designing, and documenting airplane features, technologies, and systems specific to each airline.

As an Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Washington (UW) School of Law, Mr. Njeim teaches advanced courses in intellectual property. He also advises and mentors law students participating in independent study programs and law clinics, including the UW School of Law Entrepreneurial Law Clinic.

Andrew T. Serafini is a registered patent lawyer who focuses his practice on strategic and comprehensive intellectual property counseling and management for biotechnology, biopharmaceutical, and other life sciences clients. Dr. Serafini is listed as a leading lawyer in the 2021 edition of Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business in Intellectual Property. IP STARS recognized him in 2020 and 2021 as a “Patent Star” in Washington and nationally. He was also recognized as a top patent practitioner in 2021 and the six years immediately preceding by IAM Patent 1000 – The World's Leading Patent Practitioners.

As a scientist, Dr. Serafini enjoys the pursuit of innovation in his scientific research – as a lawyer, he uses his scientific background to strengthen his clients’ positions. He assists his clients in obtaining, protecting, and enforcing their intellectual property rights, especially in the areas of immunology, molecular biology, chemistry, antibody engineering and therapeutics, vaccines, stem cell technologies, molecular genetics, genomics, proteomics, and much more.

Dr. Serafini has focused on strategic and comprehensive intellectual property counseling and management for biotechnology, biopharmaceutical, and other diverse life sciences clients in over twenty years of practice. He fully engages with his clients, so he knows his clients’ wants and needs and how to best realize his clients’ goals given the pressures of business, the innovations of science, and the connections of the global community.

April Abele Isaacson has 25 years of experience as a trial lawyer and registered United States patent attorney. Ms. Isaacson has significant trial experience in biopharma and chemical patent litigation—particularly Hatch-Waxman cases. She also spent nearly five years in-house at a pharmaceutical company where she provided intellectual property and regulatory strategic counseling during all stages of product development and managed numerous Hatch-Waxman litigations. Ms. Isaacson received her J.D. from Vanderbilt University, her M.S. in pharmacological and physiological sciences from the University of Chicago, and her A.B. in biological sciences from Mount Holyoke College, and is a decorated US Navy veteran (JAG Corps).