TMAE Summit RoundtablesBefore It Gets Lit(igated): Sober approaches to avoid litigation
Alt Legal Team | April 28, 2025
We’ll be making the most of our time during the lunch hour at the TMAE Summit by hosting small roundtable discussions on a variety of relevant topics. Each roundtable will have a host assigned to lead the discussion with pertinent questions, allowing you to share knowledge and resources and get to know your fellow conference attendees.
Roundtable Description
Pre-litigation trademark enforcement offers a cost-effective path to protect brands before conflicts escalate. Because strategic use of cease-and-desist letters, letters of protest, and targeted monitoring can halt infringement in its tracks—and because coordination with government agencies, law enforcement, and other stakeholders steers enforcement safely—mastering these tactics is essential. In this roundtable, Keyonn Pope—partner at Riley Safer Holmes & Cancila—will lead participants through a discussion of practical tips and best practices for protecting a brand without escalating to high-stakes litigation. Attendees will discuss:
- Effective use of cease-and-desist letters
- Utilizing letters of protest
- Investigation and monitoring techniques
- Negotiation and settlement tactics
- Coordinating enforcement with outside entities
View all TMAE Summit Roundtables here.
Learn more about the TMAE Summit here.
Roundtable Host
Keyonn Pope, Partner, Riley Safer Holmes & Cancila
A tech-savvy litigator and business-minded advisor, Keyonn Pope helps clients navigate complex and high-stakes issues involving intellectual property, media and entertainment, and a range of commercial disputes. Clients across multiple industries rely on Keyonn to represent their brands in bet-the-company patent and trademark litigation and to help them develop and implement the strategies that protect their key technologies, domain names, product licenses, business processes, and more. With a deep technical background as an electrical engineer for a major manufacturing company and experience performing under pressure as both a student-athlete and musician, he has a unique ability to explain complicated subjects clearly and persuasively, which has enabled him to achieve favorable results for his clients even in the most challenging circumstances. Clients value Keyonn’s outstanding communication, proactive approach, and leadership skills, which balance an engineer’s attention to detail with a competitor and performer’s focus on achieving success. Though his practice is rooted in his work as an intellectual property litigator, clients routinely turn to him for guidance and counsel on a wide range of matters. Keyonn is a Chicago-based Partner and firmwide Chair of the Intellectual Property Practice Team.