Barnes & Thornburg’s Newly Opened Boston Office Welcomes Three IP Attorneys, Paralegal

Barnes & Thornburg has added three skilled intellectual property attorneys to its new Boston office, partner Andrew Rejent and associates Alex Nagorniy and Liza Hadley, along with IP paralegal Christine Shapiro. They practice in the firm’s Intellectual Property Department.

This group joins on the heels of opening the firm’s Boston office in June. The Boston office is the firm’s 20th in the U.S. and reflects its growing intellectual property and life sciences practice in the region. The addition of Rejent, Nagorniy and Hadley expand the Boston office to seven partners, and nine attorneys total. The group joins from Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP.

Rejent, Nagorniy and Hadley are skilled intellectual property attorneys who represent clients in a range of industries, including electromechanical, chemical, mechanical, software arts, medical devices, and information technology. In addition to patent prosecution, the group assists clients with the development of portfolio strategies and provides counseling on a variety of intellectual property matters.

“The addition of this group furthers our goal of expanding our national patent practice, and we’re excited to welcome them,” said Julia Gard, chair of the firm’s Intellectual Property Department. “They are high-caliber attorneys with well-rounded practices, and their ability to advise our clients on a wide range of patent matters, from applications to prosecution, will be invaluable.”

Rejent’s practice is centered on patent prosecution. Leveraging his background in aerospace engineering and over a decade of intellectual property experience, Rejent manages clients’ patent portfolios and develops prosecution strategies for U.S. and Patent Cooperation Treaty filings across a wide spectrum of advanced technologies. In addition to Rejent’s prosecution experience, he assists his clients with patentability searches, product clearance, freedom to operate analyses, IP due diligence, and infringement and validity opinions. Rejent practices in front of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and also advises clients internationally, having helped secure patent grants in numerous foreign jurisdictions, including China, Europe and Japan.

Nagorniy focuses his practice on complex patent prosecution both in the United States and in international jurisdictions. He counsels clients on methods to prepare and prosecute patent applications, maintain patent portfolios, perform due diligence analyses, and obtain and defend trademark protection.

Hadley’s practice encompasses both patent prosecution and the handling of transactional matters related to intellectual property. Hadley counsels clients in drafting and negotiating complex commercial and license agreements, and advises on IP matters in conjunction with corporate transactions, such as financings, mergers, and acquisitions. Additionally, Hadley has a robust patent practice that includes strategic development, management, and protection of clients’ patent portfolios, both in the U.S. and abroad, as well as advising on non-infringement and invalidity opinions.

Shapiro is an intellectual property paralegal with more than 15 years of law firm experience working with patents and foreign and U.S. dockets.

“We are dedicated to growing our team in Boston and we are thrilled to add the talents of Andrew, Alex, Liza and Christine so soon after opening the office,” said Robert T. Grand, Barnes & Thornburg managing partner. “This group brings an excellent skill set that complements our current footprint in Boston’s competitive legal and IP sectors.”

Rejent earned his J.D. from Boston College Law School, his M.S. from the University of Cincinnati in aerospace engineering, and his B.S. from the University of Maryland.

Nagorniy earned his J.D. from Boston University School of Law and his B.E. from The Cooper Union in chemical engineering.

Hadley earned her J.D. from Boston University School of Law and her B.S. from the University of Virginia in mechanical engineering. Prior to law school, Hadley was a patent examiner at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Shapiro earned her B.S. in environmental science from Lyndon State College, an M.S. in biology from Southern Connecticut State University, and her paralegal certificate from Boston University.