Alan G. Gorman is a partner in the Atlanta and Minneapolis offices of Barnes & Thornburg LLP where he is a member of the firm's Intellectual Property Department and co-leader of the firm's Africa practice team. Mr. Gorman focuses his practice on intellectual property law, multinational business transactions, high technology and international trade. Because he is an Attorney at Law and an Electrical Engineer, Mr. Gorman is particularly adept at developing business strategies and counseling clients on matters relating to technology and innovation. His high-tech transactional patent practice encompasses virtually all phases of patent portfolio management, including patent prosecution, searches, opinions, technology transfer, licensing, infringement/validity assessment and dispute resolution. He regularly advises corporate clients on business strategies designed to monetize scientific developments in the mechanical, electrical and software technologies, including computer architecture, digital logic, electronic circuitry, e-commerce, medical devices, health care systems, and various consumer products. Mr. Gorman also has tremendous experience litigating trademarks and transacting virtually all phases of trademark prosecution, including the preparation of trademark clearance and availability opinions, preparation and prosecution of domestic and international trademark applications, and conducting appeals before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.
Mr. Gorman counsels and represents companies on various aspects of international trade and business transactions in Africa. He possesses an in-depth understanding of the challenges faced by firms involved in international trade not only from a legal but also from a business transaction perspective. The counseling he provides businesses engaged in international transactions is designed to assist clients in the proactive management of legal and business risks inherent in international trade and foreign business operations. Mr. Gorman regularly assists African firms on U.S. business transactions.
During the 20 years that he has combined his knowledge of engineering with the practice of law, Mr. Gorman has developed a specific expertise in the area of business method patents. A sampling of some of the patents he has authored include: U.S. Patent No. 6,138,911(In-Store Points Redemption System and Method); U.S. Patent No. 6,141,658 (Computer System and Method for Managing Sales Information), U.S. Patent No. 6,223,164 (Method and System for Generating Statistically-based Medical Provider Utilization Profiles), U.S. Patent No. 7,606,641 (Fuel Consumption Data Tracking/Collection and Aircraft/Route Optimization System) U.S. Patent No. 7,698,185 (Methods and systems for generating dynamic reward currency values); U.S. Patent No. 7,756,094 (Interoperable mobile ad hoc network); and U.S. Patent No. 7,802,335.
Prior to entering into the legal profession, Mr. Gorman was an electrical engineer at General Electric Medical Systems where he designed digital and analog electrical circuits in GE's X-Ray and Ultrasound Technology Groups.
Mr. Gorman earned his B.S. in electrical engineering from Marquette University in 1989, and his J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1992. In 1997, he served as an adjunct professor at his alma mater, the University of Wisconsin Law School.
Mr. Gorman comes to Barnes & Thornburg from the intellectual property firm, Merchant & Gould, where he was a managing partner of the firm's Atlanta office, served as the firm's hiring partner and on the firm's management committee. He has been recognized by Law and Politics as a rising star, and was selected for inclusion in the Minnesota Business Journal's "40 under 40" list, where he was named "a top civic and business leader." In 2011, he was recognized by Women Looking Ahead Magazine as one of the State of Georgia's Most Powerful and Influential Attorneys.
Mr. Gorman represents indigent clients on pro bono legal matters. He served on the Board of Directors of the Minnesota State Bar Association's Volunteer Lawyers Network and currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation. He has served on the governing council of the Minnesota State Bar Association Computer Law Section and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Joe Beazley Foundation. In recognition of his community service in Minnesota, Mr. Gorman was appointed by Minnesota's Governor to the State's Council on Black Minnesotans. He is a member of the American Bar Association, American Intellectual Property Law Association, National Bar Association, Georgia, Wisconsin and Minnesota State Bar Associations and the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce.
Mr. Gorman is admitted to practice in Georgia; Minnesota; and Wisconsin; before the U.S. District Courts for the states of Georgia, Minnesota and Wisconsin; before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit; and before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
He has achieved an AV Preeminent peer review rating by Martindale-Hubbell.
(Also at Minneapolis, Minnesota Office)