He has represented clients before a wide variety of government agencies, including the U.S. International Trade Commission, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the International Trade Administration (Department of Commerce), the Office of Foreign Assets Control, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. He has argued cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the Court of International Trade.
His principal practice areas include Section 337 investigations at the International Trade Commission, Customs counseling, enforcement, and litigation; antidumping and countervailing duty investigations; and export controls.
Mr. Blakeslee is a 1991 magna cum laude graduate of the University of Georgia Law School, where he was a member of the Order of the Coif and the Georgia Law Review. He also holds an M.A. and a Ph.D. from Tulane University and the degree of licence-ès-lettres from the Université de Strasbourg in Strasbourg, France.
He is admitted to the practice of law in the District of Columbia and Georgia (inactive) and is a member of the bars of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, the U.S. Court of International Trade, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.
He is a member of the American Intellectual Property Law Association, the ITC Trial Lawyers Association, the Federal Circuit Bar Association, and the Customs Lawyers Association.
He has written and spoken extensively on the subject of intellectual property protection in the context of international trade. Recent publications and presentations in this area include Threats to the Intellectual and Other Property Rights of U.S. Companies from China’s Manufacturing Sector: An Overview and a Case History, presented at seminar entitled Intellectual Property Issues in China — Exploring a Roadmap for the New Administration, U.S. Patent And Trademark Office, Washington, D.C. (Aug. 19, 2009); Post-litigation Enforcement of Remedial Orders Issued by the U.S. International Trade Commission in Section 337 Investigations, 8 JOHN MARSHALL REVIEW OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAW L. 248 (2009); Sourcing Your Products from China without Losing Your Shirt, Your Intellectual Property, or Your Customers, THE SEMA NEWS (Dec. 2007 & Feb. 2008); Seeking Adjudication of a Design-Around in Section 337 Patent Infringement Investigations: Procedural Context and Strategic Considerations, 35 AIPLA QUARTERLY JOURNAL 385 (Fall 2007) (with Christopher V. Meservy); Settling Section 337 Investigations: Procedures and Practice, 21 ITC TRIAL LAWYERS ASS’N 337 REP. 87, summer 2005 (summer associate number) (with Hong Lu); Options for Enforcing ITC Remedial Orders: An Overview, presented in a session entitled SO YOU WON! NOW WHAT?: POST-LITIGATION ENFORCEMENT OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION REMEDIAL ORDERS at the Annual Meeting of American Intellectual Property Law Association, Washington, D.C. (Oct. 24, 2008); and Protect It or Lose It! Techniques for Enforcing your Intellectual Property Rights against Infringers, presented as part of a seminar entitled FROM REGISTRATION TO LITIGATION: HOW TO SAFEGUARD YOUR COMPANY AGAINST ILLEGAL KNOCKOFFS AND COUNTERFEITS at the 2008 annual trade show of the Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association, Las Vegas, NV (Nov. 3, 2008).
Representative Matters
Certain Glassware, Inv. No. 337-TA-767 (2011), U.S. International Trade Commission (counsel to all respondents).
Certain Starter Motors and Alternators, Inv. No. 337-TA-755 (2011), U.S. International Trade Commission (counsel to respondent).
Certain Toner Cartridges, Inv. No. 337-TA-740 (2010), U.S. International Trade Commission (counsel to respondent).
Certain Electronic Paper Towel Dispensing Devices and Components Thereof, Inv. No. 337-TA-718 (2010), U.S. International Trade Commission (counsel to respondent).
Certain Foldable Stools, Inv. No. 337-TA-693 (2010), U.S. International Trade Commission (counsel to respondents).
Certain Dual Access Locks and Products Containing Same, Inv. No. 337-TA-689 (2010), U.S. International Trade Commission (consultant to respondents).
Certain Energy Drink Products, Inv. No. 337-TA-678 (2009), U.S. International Trade Commission (counsel to three respondents).
Certain Nitrile Gloves, Inv. No. 337-TA-608 (2007), U.S. International Trade Commission (counsel to respondent).
Certain Laminated Floor Panels, Inv. No. 337-TA-545 (2005), U.S. International Trade Commission (counsel to two respondents).
Certain Automotive Measuring Devices, Products Containing the Same, and Bezels for Such Devices, Inv. No. 337-TA-494 (2004), U.S. International Trade Commission (counsel to complainant)
Represented U.S. trademark holder in a trade dress litigation where I worked with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection to enforce the client’s trademark rights against infringing imports during the pendency of the litigation.
Represented Russian steel industry before the Department of Commerce in proceeding leading to the revocation of the Russian Federation’s designation as a non-market economy for the purpose of U.S. trade cases.
Represented Japanese and German steel clients in various antidumping investigations, including both the Department of Commerce and the International Trade Commission phases thereof.
Represented largest U.S. corporate claimant in its claim for compensation before the United Nations Compensation Commission in connection with losses arising from the First Gulf War.
Mr. Blakeslee’s Legal Publications and Presentations
Articles and Notes
Pursuing Patent Infringement Litigation at the U.S. International Trade Commission and in Federal District Court: A Primer for SEMA Members, online article at website of Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association, http://www.sema.org/intellectual-property-rights-guide/past-articles-webinars (September 2010).
Post-litigation Enforcement of Remedial Orders Issued by the U.S. International Trade Commission in Section 337 Investigations, 8 J. MARSHALL REV. INTELL. PROP. L. 248 (Winter 2009), also available online at http://www.jmripl.com/archives/archive.php?archive=27.
Sourcing Your Products from China without Losing Your Shirt, Your Intellectual Property, or Your Customers, THE SEMA NEWS (Dec. 2007 & Feb. 2008).
Seeking Adjudication of a Design-Around in Section 337 Patent Infringement Investigations: Procedural Context and Strategic Considerations, 35 AIPLA QUARTERLY JOURNAL 385 (Fall 2007) (with Christopher V. Meservy).
Shahin Shane Ebrahimi v. Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, AWD 560-44/46/47-3, Iran-United States Claims Tribunal, October 12, 1994, 89 AMERICAN JOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL LAW 385 (1995) (case note).
Implied Warranties of Quality and Fitness in the Sale of Residential Property, in McDonnell & Coleman, COMMERCIAL AND CONSUMER WARRANTIES: DRAFTING, PERFORMING, AND LITIGATING (Matthew Bender 1991) (chapter in treatise).
The Distant Island Problem: The Arbitration on the Delimitation of the Maritime Zones around the French Collectivité Territoriale of Saint-Pierre-and-Miquelon,” 21 GEORGIA JOURNAL OF INT'L AND COMPARATIVE LAW, 359 (1991).
The Eleventh Amendment and States' Sovereign Immunity from Suit by a Private Citizen: Hans v. Louisiana and its Progeny after Pennsylvania v. Union Gas Company, 24 GEORGIA LAW REVIEW 113 (1989).
Other Publications
NATIONAL TREATY LAW AND PRACTICE: ESSAYS ON THE LAW AND PRACTICE OF SELECTED COUNTRIES, DEDICATED TO THE MEMORY OF MONROE LEIGH (Martinus Nijhoff Publishers on behalf of the American Society of International Law, 2005) (co-editor with Duncan B. Hollis and L. Benjamin Ederington).
NATIONAL TREATY LAW AND PRACTICE, VOL. III: CANADA, EGYPT, ISRAEL, MEXICO, RUSSIA, SOUTH AFRICA, Studies in Transnational Legal Policies No. 33 (American Society of International Law, 2003) (co-editor with Monroe Leigh and L. Benjamin Ederington).
THE LANGUAGE OF TRADE: A GLOSSARY OF TERMS FREQUENTLY USED IN THE INTERNATIONAL TRADING SYSTEM (U.S. Department of State, Office of International Information Programs, 3d ed. 2000) (co-editor with Carlos A. Garcia), available on the U.S. Department of State website at http://usinfo.org/enus/economy/trade/langtrade.html. The third edition of THE LANGUAGE OF TRADE has been translated into Chinese and Arabic.
NATIONAL TREATY LAW AND PRACTICE, VOL. II: AUSTRIA, CHILE, COLOMBIA, JAPAN, NETHERLANDS, UNITED STATES, Studies in Transnational Legal Policies No. 30 (American Society of International Law, 1999) (co-editor with Monroe Leigh and L. Benjamin Ederington).
NATIONAL TREATY LAW AND PRACTICE, VOL. I: FRANCE, GERMANY, INDIA, SWITZERLAND, THAILAND, UNITED KINGDOM, Studies in Transnational Legal Policies No. 27 (American Society of International Law, 1995) (co-editor with Monroe Leigh).
THE LANGUAGE OF TRADE: A GLOSSARY OF TERMS FREQUENTLY USED IN THE INTERNATIONAL TRADING SYSTEM (U.S. Information Agency, 2d ed. 1994) (co-editor with Amb. Michael B. Smith).
Articles Directed by Mr. Blakeslee
Ridwan Khan, When Can a Complainant’s Litigation Costs Count as Indicia of the Existence of a Domestic Industry?: Coaxial Cable Connectors, Inv. 337-TA-650, 27 ITC TRIAL LAWYERS ASS’N 337 REP., summer 2010 (summer associate number) (forthcoming).
Cade Buck, Unilateral Motions for Termination Based on a Consent Order in Section 337 Investigations at the U.S. International Trade Commission: A Survey and Analysis, 26 ITC TRIAL LAWYERS ASS’N 337 REP. 207-219, summer 2009 (summer associate number) (awarded Outstanding Article Award 2009 [one of three] by ITC Trial Lawyers Association).
Hong Lu, Settling Section 337 Investigations: Procedures and Practice, 21 ITC TRIAL LAWYERS ASS’N 337 REP. 87, summer 2005 (summer associate number).
Recent Presentations
Fine Tuning Your IPR Strategy: Know Before You Go, webinar on enforcing intellectual property rights in China, broadcast to members of the Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association preparing to leave for market exploration trip to China (broadcast July 8, 2010).
Participation on three-person panel of seminar entitled PATENTS, TRADEMARKS, AND COPYRIGHTS: ASK THE EXPERTS, presented at the 2009 annual trade show of the Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association, Las Vegas, NV (Nov. 2, 2009); also presented as a webinar broadcast to the membership of the Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association (broadcast Oct. 22, 2009).
Coping with Threats from China's Manufacturing Sector to the Intellectual Property Rights of U.S. Companies: A Case History, presented at seminar for U.S. Government personnel working on internation intellectual property issues entitled INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ISSUES IN CHINA — EXPLORING A ROADMAP FOR THE NEW ADMINISTRATION, Global Intellectual Property Academy, U.S. Patent And Trademark Office, Washington, D.C. (Aug. 19, 2009).
Options for Enforcing ITC Remedial Orders: An Overview, presented in a session entitled SO YOU WON! NOW WHAT?: POST-LITIGATION ENFORCEMENT OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION REMEDIAL ORDERS at the Annual Meeting of American Intellectual Property Law Association, Washington, D.C. (Oct. 24, 2008).
Protect It or Lose It! Techniques for Enforcing your Intellectual Property Rights against Infringers, presented as part of a seminar entitled FROM REGISTRATION TO LITIGATION: HOW TO SAFEGUARD YOUR COMPANY AGAINST ILLEGAL KNOCKOFFS AND COUNTERFEITS at the 2008 annual trade show of the Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association, Las Vegas, NV (Nov. 3, 2008).
Protecting your Company’s Intellectual Property from Infringement, presented as part of a webinar entitled DEVELOPING STRATEGIES TO PROTECT YOUR INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY broadcast to the membership of the Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association (Apr. 7, 2008).
Sourcing Your Products from China without Losing Your Shirt, Your Intellectual Property, or Your Customers, webinar broadcast to the membership of the Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association (May 17, 2007).
Why Your Company’s Intellectual Property Is a Valuable Asset and What to Do to Protect It from Infringement, seminar presented at the 2005 annual trade show of the Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association, Las Vegas, NV (Nov. 2, 2005); also presented as a webinar broadcast to the membership of the Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association (Sept. 14, 2005).
Protecting American Trademarks Against Infringing Imports: Customs Seizures, Exclusion Orders, Monetary Damages, seminar presented at the 2004 annual trade show of the Specialty Equipment Manufacturers Association, Las Vegas, NV (Nov. 3, 2004).
Professional Memberships
Customs Lawyers Association
Federal Circuit Bar Association
ITC Trial Lawyers Association
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