Barnes & Thornburg Continues IP Growth With Addition of Chicago Partner

CHICAGO – Barnes & Thornburg has added Stephen C. Smith as a partner in the Intellectual Property Department in Chicago. Smith is the latest addition to the firm’s IP practice, which added a 10-attorney Life Sciences Patent Group in late 2019. 

“Steve has a unique background outside of the legal profession that enables him to deeply understand and empathize with our clients’ most pressing concerns, as well as counsel them through their greatest intellectual property challenges,” said Julia Gard, chair of the Intellectual Property Department. “Steve also has long-standing relationships with the recent additions to our national IP practice, further enhancing our capabilities in this area.”

Prior to his legal career, Smith was a supervisor and engineer at a naval power plant facility and joins the firm with deep knowledge of patent law. He counsels a wide range of clients in the consumer product, automotive, medical device and industrial equipment industries on matters including patent prosecution, patent infringement, due diligence, licensing, and disputed matters and litigation. Smith helps clients navigate each stage of prosecution proceedings, including post issuance proceedings, drafting applications and invention harvesting. He also has valuable experience with matters that come before international patent offices and the United States Patent and Trademark Office. 

“I’m thrilled to welcome Steve to our team in Chicago,” said Michael Carrillo, Chicago office managing partner. “He’s a great addition to our growing office and we’re looking forward to leveraging his deep experience to serve our clients.” 

Smith earned his J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center and his B.S. from Purdue University. He joins from Brinks Gilson & Lione, where he served on the board of directors. 

With more than 600 attorneys and other legal professionals, Barnes & Thornburg is one of the largest law firms in the country. The firm serves clients worldwide from offices in Atlanta, California, Chicago, Delaware, Indiana, Michigan, Minneapolis, Ohio, Raleigh, Salt Lake City, Texas and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit us online at www.btlaw.com or on Twitter @BTLawNews.