For the past 20 years I have been assisting entrepreneurs and technology companies of all sizes in corporate and intellectual property transactions. A dot-com era Silicon Valley veteran, my legal career has included tours of duty in several major firms in San Francisco, New York City, and Tampa. In my third year out of law school, I founded the noted San Francisco technology law firm, Britton, Silberman & Cervantez, LLP, which was later acquired by Thelen Reid & Priest, LLP. I have been a prominent voice for the cultivation of Tampa’s entrepreneurial ecosystem while maintaining strong roots in the San Francisco Bay Area’s emerging companies community.
My clients range from startups to international conglomerates in the fields of digital media and software development, video games, education, mechanical devices, entertainment, telecommunications, healthcare, and nanotechnology. My legal work covers a full range of services of value to technology companies, such as corporate formation, venture funding, technology licensing and transactions, intellectual property strategy and prosecution (patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets), due diligence and auditing, innovation lifecycle management, mergers & acquisitions, website policies and terms of service, sweepstakes and gambling rules and procedures, employment agreements, and regulatory advice.
While in law school in the early 90's, I clerked for the Electronic Frontier Foundation. A former computer scientist and software engineer, I am the only lawyer who holds a graduate degree from the MIT Media Laboratory. Alongside my Master of Science from MIT, I also hold a Bachelor of Arts in computer science from the University of Maine and a Juris Doctor from the Boston University School of law. I am admitted to practice law in California, New York, and Florida. I am occasionally an adjunct professor of Creativity and Innovation at the University of South Florida and the University of Tampa. I am the co-founder of several startups and I write and speak frequently on entrepreneurship, creativity, ethics, and the philosophy of happiness and success. My book, “Ownability,” an introduction to intellectual property law for entrepreneurs, is available on amazon.com.
Practice areas
Languages spoken
English
de la Pena & Holiday
400 N. Tampa Street
Suite 2840
Tampa, FL, 33602
de la Pena & Holiday
601 Montgomery Street
Suite 700
San Francisco, CA, 94111
State | Status | Acquired | Updated |
---|---|---|---|
FL | Member in Good Standing | 2005 | 05/16/2022 |
NY | Currently registered | 2004 | 02/24/2022 |
CA | Active | 1994 | 02/07/2022 |
Award name | Grantor | Date Granted |
---|---|---|
Best Lawyers in America | Best Lawyers in America | 2014 |
Best Lawyers in America | Best Lawyers in America | 2013 |
Florida Legal Elite | Florida Trend Magazine | 2013 |
Best Lawyers in America | Best Lawyers in America | 2012 |
AV Preeminent 5.0 out of 5 Peer Review Rated | Martindale-Hubbell | 2012 |
Florida Legal Elite | Florida Trend Magazine | 2012 |
Best Lawyers in America | Best Lawyers in America | 2011 |
Florida Legal Elite | Florida Trend Magazine | 2011 |
Tampa's Top Attorneys | Super Lawyers | 2011 |
Best Lawyers in America | Best Lawyers in America | 2010 |
Florida Legal Elite | Florida Trend Magazine | 2010 |
Tampa's Top Attorneys | Super Lawyers | 2010 |
Florida Legal Elite | Florida Trend Magazine | 2009 |
Florida Legal Elite | Florida Trend Magazine | 2008 |
Publication name | Title | Date |
---|---|---|
Personal Blog | “Brent C.J. Britton” | 2014 |
The Tampa Tribune, op-ed, | “Instant Entrepreneurial Ecosystem: Just Add Money!” | 2013 |
South Florida Business Review | "Best Practices in IP Due Diligence” | 2008 |
Bay Area Business Magazine | “Protect Your Ideas-Turning Intellectual Property into Value” Parts l-Vll | 2008 |
The Daily Deal | “Beware the Forgotten Founders (and Other Tips for IP Due Diligence)” | 2008 |
eWeek | “Beware the Forgotten Founders (and Other Tips for IP Due Diligence” | 2008 |
School name | Degree | Graduated |
---|---|---|
Boston Univ SOL | law | 1994 |
Massachusetts Institute of Technology | S.M. | 1991 |
Univ of Maine | undergraduate | 1989 |
Conference name | Title | Date |
---|---|---|
Gasparilla Interactive Festival, Tampa | Technology and Humanity; Faris Yakob Introduction | 2015 |
Arts & Co., Tampa | Intellectual Property for Artists & Creatives | 2015 |
USF St. Pete | Pitching Investors in a Data-Driven Universe | 2014 |
CoWork Tampa | Secure Your Own Oxygen Mask Before Helping Those Around You | 2014 |
Rotary Club of Ft. Myers | Things Happy Successful People Do | 2014 |
Leadership Speaker Series | Creativity | 2014 |
Jimmy Moore’s Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb podcast | – Interview, IP for Paleo and other Nutritional Bloggers | 2014 |
SIPLA | Ownabilty: IP Law for IP Law Students | 2013 |
Tampa Writers’ Group | Legal Issues for Writers | 2013 |
Numerous Venues | Life’s a Pitch | 2013 |
TiE Tampa Chapter seminar | Due Diligence for Investors | 2013 |
Tampa Bay Inventors Council Seminar, Tampa | Tap Your Inner Wizard. Go On. Tap That. | 2011 |
Numerous venues | Ideas2Money: Start Up Your Startup in 10 Easy Steps | 2011 |
Hillsborough County Bar Association seminar, Tampa | Social Media for Lawyers | 2011 |
Ignite conference, Tampa | Playful Detachment | 2011 |
TechVenture conference | TechVenture… Human Adventure | 2011 |
TEDx confrence Tampa | Ideas2Happy | 2010 |
Internet Technology Summit | Designing the Future | 2010 |
Tampa Bay Executive Forum seminar,Tampa | Put On Your Own Oxygen Mask Before Helping Those Around You (and other Life Lessons I've Learned on Airplanes) | 2010 |
Posted by Ralph Anspach
October 14, 2017
Posted by Ralph Anspach
September 30, 2017
John Ervin, Business Attorney on Jul 19, 2020
Relationship: Worked together on matter
Brent is an exceptional and highly capable attorney. He is very experienced with venture capital, start-ups, intellectual property matters and related business law. I strongly recommend his services.
Joseph Salama, Corporate and incorporation Attorney on Nov 14, 2016
Relationship: Worked together on matter
There are but a few attorneys on this globe whom I would refer to as a "Jedi Lawyer" and Brent is one of them. He is beyond brilliant, savvy, practical, efficient, exceptionally personable, with a strong work ethic - and is very keen on providing first-class quality service to all of his clients. He is truly a pleasure to work with, let alone simply watching him in action. Brent comes with my highest possible endorsement.
John Ervin, Business Attorney on Jul 19, 2020
Relationship: Worked together on matter
Brent is an exceptional and highly capable attorney. He is very experienced with venture capital, start-ups, intellectual property matters and related business law. I strongly recommend his services.
Joseph Salama, Corporate and incorporation Attorney on Nov 14, 2016
Relationship: Worked together on matter
There are but a few attorneys on this globe whom I would refer to as a "Jedi Lawyer" and Brent is one of them. He is beyond brilliant, savvy, practical, efficient, exceptionally personable, with a strong work ethic - and is very keen on providing first-class quality service to all of his clients. He is truly a pleasure to work with, let alone simply watching him in action. Brent comes with my highest possible endorsement.
Richard Fee, Licensing Attorney on Jun 25, 2015
Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community
I heartily and without reservation endorse Brent. He is a brilliant lawyer and an exceptional person.
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