James Michael Smedley

James M. Smedley, a member of the Firm, serves as head of the firm’s Intellectual Property and Technology law group. Mr. Smedley’s practice has focused on strategic counseling of companies with respect to protecting and enforcing their intellectual property rights, both domestically and internationally. He has a wealth of industry experience in the computer software and hardware fields, particularly in the areas of artificial intelligence and blockchain technologies. Mr. Smedley’s practice also covers the biotechnology and life sciences fields, where he advises clients on matters such as identifying, protecting and licensing novel drug therapies.

Mr. Smedley has prosecuted hundreds of patents before the United States Patent and Trademark Office and its foreign counterparts in over 70 countries worldwide. Mr. Smedley has provided intellectual property counsel to organizations of all sizes, from startups, to small-to-medium sized enterprises to Fortune 100 companies as well as private and public universities. From securing the rights in inventions and brands, to developing substantial and lucrative patent portfolios, to handling complex intellectual property litigation and licensing matters, Mr. Smedley’s practice covers the management of the entire intellectual property lifecycle.

Mr. Smedley is also an avid video gamer, and as part of the gaming community, represents eSports players, organizations and teams with respect to all their management, contracts and branding needs. As a gamer, and an attorney, Mr. Smedley is one of the few in the industry that understands the needs of the talent, teams and agencies from both the legal and real-world perspectives.

Prior to joining the Firm in 2019, Mr. Smedley was the managing member of the Sigma Law Group, an intellectual property law boutique he founded in 2010. Prior to that, Mr. Smedley worked in the technology group at Lowenstein Sandler PC.

Mr. Smedley holds a dual degree in Computer Science and English from Rutgers University, and his JD from Boston University School of Law.

Mr. Smedley is admitted to practice in the States of New York and New Jersey, as well as the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and the United States District Court of New Jersey. Mr. Smedley is also registered to practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office, and is a registered Canadian Patent Agent.