William F. Ahmann

Mr. Ahmann is Special Counsel in the Intellectual Property Practice Group in the firm's Palo Alto office.

Areas of Practice

Mr. Ahmann focuses on intellectual property law in the fields of wireless networks, telecommunications, computers, software, electronics, security, business methods, and the Internet.

Other areas of his practice include patent prosecution, licensing, litigation, copyright, trademark procurement, and designs protection. Mr. Ahmann has worked with a number of clients, rendering patent opinions, including invalidity and noninfringement opinions, focusing on patent prosecution and patent analysis, and establishing internal patent procurement programs and competitive analysis.

Education

• J.D., University of California, Hastings, 2001
• B.S., University of Missouri, computer science, 1993

Admissions

• California
• U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

Languages

• Japanese

Mr. Ahmann has drafted, supervised, and/or prosecuted approximately 600 patent applications, and has filed and/or prosecuted dozens of reexaminations. 
He has been involved in multiple litigation matters and monetization efforts. He also has served as primary counsel in many licensing negotiations.

In the wireless space in particular, Mr. Ahmann has drafted, supervised, and/or prosecuted nearly 100 patent applications; drafted or supervised opinion letters; analyzed extensive portfolios; and defended against licensing and litigation efforts of non-practicing entities ("patent trolls").

Articles

• Patent Reform: The Impact on Start-Ups, Intellectual Property & Technology Law Journal, January 2012

Speeches

• Facilitator, "Patents and Trade Secrets for Early-stage Cleantech Ventures," Cleantech Open, San Jose, July 23, 2010
• Speaker, "Meeting with Japanese Delegation (SVASE/US Embassy in Tokyo)," Intellectual Property: Protecting Innovation, March 8, 2011
• Mentor, The Cleantech Open, July 4, 2011
• Speaker, Introduction to Copyright, Trademark and Other IP Law, LawReviewCLE, August 25, 2011
• Speaker, "Protect Your Intellectual Property Without Breaking Your Bank!" SVASE CXO Leadership Forum, September 14,2011
• Panelist, Patent Update Panel, ESIP Conference, Los Cabos, Mexico, November 9-13, 2011
• Speaker, "An Introduction to Doing Business in Silicon Valley, Osborne Clarke," Palo Alto, CA, November 15, 2011.