
Susan A. Smith is an experienced intellectual property counselor and litigator who advises some of the world’s leading brands on all phases of trademark representation.
Susan has served as trademark counsel to household-name brands such as Apple, Walmart, Steve Madden, Volkswagen, Audi, Dish Networks, and the U.S. Olympic Committee. She advises clients on trademark clearance and opinions, applications, and registration, as well as rebranding, management of foreign trademark portfolios, enforcement matters, and brand protection/anti-counterfeiting. She litigates trademark matters in federal courts across the country and before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Trademark Trial and Appeal Board and the International Trade Commission (ITC).
Experience
Representative Matters
Trademark Experience
- Managing worldwide trademark portfolio of Steve Madden and Betsey Johnson brands
- Handling US trademark clearances and trademark prosecution for Volkswagen and Audi brands
- Managing the trademark portfolio of the US Olympic Committee, including enforcement of trademark rights and opposition proceedings
Professional Highlights
Recognition & Accomplishments
Named a Patent Star and Trademark Star (2016-2022) in District of Columbia in the IP Stars Handbook published by Managing Intellectual Property
Named one of the “Top 250 Women in IP” by Managing Intellectual Property (2019-2021)
Recognized as a Leading Trademark Professional in Enforcement & Litigation and in Prosecution & Strategy, Washington D.C., World Trademark Review 1000 (2015, 2017-2020)
Recognized for Trademarks: Litigation (2013, 2016-2020), Trademarks: Non-contentious (2014-2020) and Patent Litigation: Full Coverage (2018), Legal 500 United States
Publications
Co-author, Chapter 32, United States, International Pharmaceutical Law and Practice, Madelein Kleyn and Louis van Wyk eds., 2020
Related Insights
Credentials
Education
Washington University in St. Louis School of Law (J.D.)
Brown University (B.A.)
Admissions
District of Columbia
Maryland
California
U.S. District Court, Central District of California
U.S. District Court, Northern District of California
U.S. District Court, Southern District of California
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan
U.S. Court of Appeals, First Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit