TMAE Summit WorkshopsNeed-to-Know Bases: Building a Trademark Knowledge Base
Alt Legal Team | June 29, 2026
This year’s TMAE Summit will include an additional day of events to provide attendees with more opportunities to expand their skills and make meaningful connections. Day 2 of the TMAE Summit is available for an additional fee and will feature a morning of interactive workshops where attendees will participate in small groups, focusing on a particular topic, and leaving with actionable work product that they can apply at their offices. Following the morning workshops and networking, we’ll head downtown for a tour of the Brooklyn Bridge, where our expert guides will lead us on a stroll across the iconic NYC landmark.`
Workshop Description
Every trademark team has them: the processes only one person knows, the template buried in an old email, or the answer that requires tracking down a colleague who happens to have the information in their head. As portfolios grow and teams change, that kind of institutional knowledge becomes harder to maintain and easier to lose. A well-designed knowledge base can make onboarding easier, create consistency, reduce repetitive questions, and help preserve critical information when team members vacation or even move on.
In this hands-on workshop, Audrey Wilkins of Cowan DeBaets will explore what makes an effective knowledge base, share examples of the resources and documentation that trademark teams may want to include, and help participants begin building a framework they can take back to their organizations. Participants will develop a clear understanding of how to organize and capture knowledge, including:
- Identifying the information and resources that belong in a knowledge base
- Organizing content for usability, accessibility, and long-term maintenance
- Evaluating examples of procedures, templates, guides, and reference materials
- Determining ownership, update processes, and governance considerations
Learn more about the TMAE Summit here.
Workshop Host
Audrey Wilkins, Intellectual Property Manager, Cowan DeBaets Abrahams & Sheppard
Audrey Wilkins is an accomplished IP Manager with nearly three decades of experience, having begun her career in the Membership Services Department at the International Trademark Association (INTA). She has handled trademark, copyright, and patent litigation matters, and her deep expertise includes Madrid Protocol applications, preparing substantive Office Action responses, conducting product and website reviews, licensing, brand marketing and compliance, and trademark clearance and analysis. Audrey earned her Paralegal Certificate from Long Island University and a Master of Legal Studies from Pepperdine University. Her notable contributions within INTA include serving as an invited member of the Special Task Force responding to U.S. Copyright Office Notice(s) of Inquiry, participating on the Copyright Committee Policy Subcommittee, and chairing the Non-Profits Organization Committee.