Practice Focus
Thomas D. Kohler is a highly experienced registered patent attorney who has worked in diverse technology areas including medical devices, consumer products, Internet and computer products, semiconductor fabrication and telecommunications.
In his practice, Tom engages in patent litigation, opinion preparation, patent preparation and prosecution, transactional work and portfolio development and management. He counsels clients regarding all aspects of positioning and maintaining worldwide intellectual property portfolios, clearing products, and negotiating and drafting patent and trademark licenses as well as settlement and development agreements.
Tom is a member of DRM’s cross-practice ARRA-Stimulus team, which actively monitors and interprets federal and state implementations of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act. With billions of dollars of
research and development funding available and a mandate to implement projects quickly raising the stakes for businesses, Tom is prepared to assist clients to effectively develop, protect, defend and commercialize their innovations and creative assets.
Significant Matters
Examples of significant matters Tom has handled and innovations he has developed to benefit his clients include:
• Developed and executed world wide patent strategies for diverse clients including start-up medical device companies, an established consumer products company and an alternative energy company.
• Developed and executed a plan for improved U.S. patents, and managed the U.S. patent portfolio of a large foreign auto manufacturer.
• Developed and executed successful litigation strategies to both enforce patents to obtain significant results and defend against charges of patent infringement for clients in technologies including dental materials, hard disk drive motors, VCR components, enteral feeding devices, marine anchors and child resistant cigarette lighters.
Tom has twice had the unique opportunity to prosecute an original patent application to issue, successfully defend the issued patent in reexamination and then successfully enforce the patent in litigation leading to favorable settlements for both patent owners.
Professional Activities
Before joining DRM, Tom built his intellectual property practice as a partner in the San Francisco office of a large, international law firm and, prior to that, as a partner and the practice group leader for the mechanical technologies practice of a leading intellectual property law firm.
Reported Cases
Vita Zahnfabrik H. Rauter GMBH & Co. KG v. Dentsply Intern., Inc., 278 Fed.Appx. 1013, 2008 WL 2076760, , C.A.Fed. (Cal.), May 16, 2008 (No. 2007-1203)
Personal Interests
Sailing, backcountry skiing, furniture and wooden boat making, custom cars.
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