2. Mr. Adam Ruttenberg
Partner at Cooley
Business Dept.
ADAM RUTTENBERG is a partner in the Cooley Business department
and the head of the Firm's Technology Transactions Group. He joined
the Firm in 2000, and is resident in the Firm's Washington, DC and
Reston offices. Mr. Ruttenberg advises a number of leading technology
companies regarding the exploitation of their intellectual property assets.
His practice focuses on all aspects of technology transactions, including
counseling, structuring and negotiating such deals. Mr. Ruttenberg has
broad experience representing emerging companies and large corporate
clients in technology and intellectual property matters.His strategic
counseling experience includes developing commercialization distribution
and pricing strategies for companies. In 2006 - 2009 the Washington
Business Journal recognized Mr. Ruttenberg as one of the DC area's top
technology transactions lawyers.
From 2006 - 2013, Mr. Ruttenberg was named one of the Best Lawyers
in America. The Legal 500named Mr. Ruttenberg as a leading lawyer in
the field of technology transactions in 2008 - 2013. Mr. Ruttenberg is
currently listed as one of the world's leading patent and technology
licensing lawyers in the IAM Licensing 250 and the IAM Patent 1000.
Prior to joining Cooley, Mr. Ruttenberg was the Vice President of
Contracts and Sales Operations of MicroStrategy Incorporated.
Previously, he had been in private practice representing technology
companies in information technology and biotechnology matters. Mr.
Ruttenberg received a JD in 1992 from Washington University in St.
Louis where he was a member of the Order of the Coif. He received a
BS in Genetics, Microcell Biology and the Philosophy of Science from
the University of Minnesota in 1989. Mr. Ruttenberg has published
numerous articles on business transactions, technology transfer,
intellectual property and internet law. He is also a frequent speaker on
these topics. Mr. Ruttenberg is a member of the bars of the
Commonwealth of Virginia and the District of Columbia.
Tell us about yourself:
I was born in Washington, D.C. and grew up in the Midwest. I went to
the University of Minnesota for my undergraduate studies and then went
on to Washington University in St. Louis Law School. I have been
practicing law in the Washington, D.C. area since 1992.
What is a day like in your field?
Each day for me is different and that is what I love about my job. Some
days I will be dealing with nuanced intellectual property issues, others I
will be dealing with the CEO of a start-up on licensing models and still
other days I will be in negotiations all day. I get to deal with
all types of technology and media, people and size of
companies.
#ACISoftwareLicensing
3. What is the tip/best practice you would like to share with your peers?
What do you like about working at your company?
Being at Cooley gives me access to some of the brightest and best
attorneys in the worlds. Working with these individuals along with the
culture of the firm dedicated to working with technology based
companies is unique and the support I get is what really makes working
at Cooley great.
An understanding that the allocation of intellectual property is sometimes a
complex exercise and that if people think through the ramifications of the
buzzwords carefully they will realize that they can have unintended
consequences. It is important to think through all of the implications of a
given ownership structure and make sure it aligns with the business
purposes of the parties.
What would you change in the industry?
If I could change one thing about the industry it would be the expectation
of speed. It was not that long ago that attorneys did not use cell
phones, e-mail and computers. I believe that while the use of these new
technologies is critical and helps bring efficiencies to clients, they also
bring a downside and that is a loss of civility and an expectation of 24X7
access and zero turnaround time. If everyone would slow down I think it
would bring back civility and attorneys and clients could take more time
to ensure that the relationship was as proactive as it should be. Not
everything is an emergency and not everything has to be done
yesterday. Sometimes, a slower and more thoughtful approaches better.
I am lucky tin that I get to work with many clients that share this
philosophy, but I know that this is not a universal view.
#ACISoftwareLicensing
4. Adam Ruttenberg
Speaker at ACI’s 17th Annual
The Practical and Tactical Art of the Deal in Software
Agreements - Cloud, SaaS, Open Source & Licensing
