Derek A. AuitoDerek A. Auito's practice focuses on intellectual property portfolio development and client counseling, with a particular emphasis on patent prosecution, litigation, competitor portfolio analysis, commercial transactions and licensing.
As a registered patent attorney, Derek has written and prosecuted hundreds of utility and design patents covering a variety of mechanical, electrical and software technologies. He regularly advises clients on trademark, copyright and branding strategies. He has extensive experience representing clients before US courts at the trial and appellate levels, including the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and before the US International Trade Commission (ITC) and the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO).
Derek has many years of experience drafting and negotiating a wide range of agreements relating to the development and use of intellectual property as well as general corporate matters, including licensing, customer agreements, master service agreements, software as a service (SaaS), employment law, domain names, cybersecurity, data privacy and complex contract and litigation settlement negotiations.
While attending law school, Derek served as a judicial extern to the Honorable Kathleen M. O’Malley of the US District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.
Before attending law school, Derek worked as a project engineer at Applied Safety & Ergonomics, Inc., a forensic engineering consulting firm specializing in ergonomics and human factors, where he analyzed product designs and designed/evaluated safety communications.