Our Nano Team understands all the growth phases of a technology business, from emerging to Fortune 500 companies. We provide services in the following areas:
Patents
Stoel Rives was among the first large general-practice firms to develop a broad patent practice. Our patent lawyers and agents have technical expertise in electrical engineering, physics, software engineering, optics, mechanical engineering, and chemistry. Our combined business, litigation, and technical expertise gives our clients one-stop shopping to meet their varied legal-services needs in the technology and intellectual property areas.
Venture Capital and Other Investors
Our lawyers regularly represent venture capital and other investors, including small-business investment companies. As counsel to an investor, we typically negotiate with the company whose securities are being purchased and prepare stock purchase and related agreements.
Technology Protection and Licenses
Clients rely on us for the domestic and international registration and protection of all forms of intellectual property, including patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets. We assist with the preparation and negotiation of domestic and international technology development; transfer and license agreements, including patent, software, and know-how licenses; confidentiality and nondisclosure agreements; software source code escrow and protection; and joint development agreements.
Trade Secrets and Confidential Information
We assist clients with a wide range of matters relating to the protection of trade secrets and confidential information. Our work includes preparing and negotiating nondisclosure and other restrictive agreements with employees (e.g., assignment of inventions, noncompetition, no solicitation, and "right of first refusal" agreements), creating internal systems to preserve and protect trade secrets, and litigation services associated with trade secret disputes.
Trademarks
The firm has experience in all areas of trademark protection and practice. We represent clients in trademark matters in state and federal courts and before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Services to our clients include developing trademark protection strategies; performing trademark searches; preparing, filing, and prosecuting trademark applications in the United States and internationally; preparing, filing, and prosecuting trademark oppositions and cancellations; and handling trademark infringement litigation.
Technology Licensing and Distribution
Increasingly, our clients are acting as both licensors and licensees of technology. The subject matter of these licenses may be a patent, copyright, trade secret, know-how, or trademark, or a combination of various forms of intellectual property. We have assisted clients with numerous foreign and domestic joint ventures and strategic alliances.
Business Organization and Financing
We have broad experience in organizing a new company, analyzing and instituting appropriate arrangements among shareholders regarding stock transfers and management, and helping the company obtain debt and equity financing, obtain liquidity for its owners, or plan for ownership and management succession. Our experience encompasses incorporation and issuance of stock to founders; preparation of shareholder agreements and buy-sell and voting agreements; venture capital and other private placement financings; research and development limited partnerships; equipment leases; loans; public offerings; and mergers, acquisitions, and reorganizations.