Brian Turung and Rita Kline expand firm’s Northeast Ohio presence protecting clients’ technologies and brands
October 9, 2020 – One of Ohio’s most well-regarded and versatile intellectual property practices just got another significant boost. Ulmer & Berne LLP today announced the continued growth of its Intellectual Property & Technology Practice Group with the addition of attorneys Brian Turung and Rita Kline. Joining the firm’s Cleveland office, the pair brings extensive expertise and industry-specific sophistication to the group’s growing team of more than 20 business-minded IP attorneys.
A registered patent attorney with a background in chemical engineering and a wealth of technical knowledge, Turung brings to Ulmer more than 30 years of experience advising a broad range of clients on IP ownership, prosecution, licensing, protection strategies, and dispute resolution. Focusing his practice on patent and trademark prosecution and enforcement, he has successfully obtained worldwide IP protection for clients in numerous highly technical fields. He offers in-depth counsel on a wide range of technologies including medical devices, welding fluxes and electrodes, hardbanding, metal coatings, industrial spring systems, and hydraulic and aerospace equipment, among others.
In addition to preparing and facilitating the ongoing prosecution of patent and trademark applications, Turung advises global clients with respect to patent portfolio development and management, and conducts IP due diligence for mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures. He also has experience with copyright prosecution, managing invention identification and protection programs, and advising on marketing and branding strategies. He earned his undergraduate degree with honors from the University of Houston and his J.D. from St. Louis University School of Law.
Also a registered patent attorney, Kline concentrates her practice on trademarks and copyrights. She has 20 years of experience advising cutting-edge organizations, including large international corporations, mid-market companies, tech startups, and nonprofits. She counsels clients on a variety of complex IP issues including worldwide brand portfolio clearance, acquisition, maintenance, and enforcement, as well as trademark dilution of famous brands, fair use, Digital Millennium Copyright Act compliance, social media trademark use, and strategies to combat domestic and international trademark counterfeiting. A zealous client advocate, Kline is counsel of record on numerous trademark-related adversarial proceedings at the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office and has federal court litigation experience.
Highly regarded in her field, Kline serves as an Adjunct Professor of Law at Cleveland-Marshall College of Law at Cleveland State University, where she teaches Trademark and Unfair Competition Law. She earned her undergraduate degree in chemistry from John Carroll University and her J.D. from the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law.
“Brian and Rita’s extensive patent, trademark, and copyright experience complements our core IP practice and bolsters the strength of our IP team in Cleveland,” said Eric M. Robbins, Group Leader of Ulmer’s Intellectual Property & Technology Practice Group. “Their technical skill, creativity, and fierce commitment to client service make them a great fit with our firm. Ulmer continues to invest in top-ranking talent that will help our clients successfully manage their complex IP matters and achieve their underlying business goals.”
Ulmer’s Intellectual Property & Technology Practice Group, comprised of dedicated attorneys with strong scientific and technological backgrounds, provides a comprehensive range of IP services to clients across the United States and internationally. From complex licensing and technology transactions to patent, trademark, and copyright prosecution and enforcement, the firm advises on IP development and protection strategies related to a broad range of products and technologies, including consumer goods, chemical products, electronic displays and instrumentation, wire and cable products, eyewear, and industrial equipment.
Ulmer remains focused on growing its nationally recognized IP practice and continuing to help clients identify and understand which IP strategies will achieve their complex commercial objectives. With Turung and Kline, Ulmer has now added four IP attorneys to its roster in just the third quarter this year, including Courtney J. Miller in Columbus and Douglas A. Gastright in Cincinnati.