Charles Bieneman, founder of The SWIP Report, is a member of the firm Bejin Bieneman PLC. Charles' practice focuses on patent prosecution, counseling, and opinions for clients in a variety of industries, including automotive, telecommunications, and aerospace.
Prior to forming Bejin Bieneman, Charles was a partner in a Michigan intellectual property firm. Previously, he was a patent examiner with the U.S. Patent and Trademark office, where he examined claim inventions in the areas of computer software, databases, and the World Wide Web. He also held management positions with two computer software companies and has significant real world experience as a software developer, consultant, and project manager. Charles also gained experience as an attorney with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Washington, D.C. office of a national law firm.
Charles is a graduate of University of Michigan Law School (J.D., cum laude, 1992) where he was a Note Editor on the Michigan Law Review, 1991-1992, and is the author of "Note, Legal Interpretation and a Constitutional Case: Home Building & Loan Association v. Blaisdell," 90 Mich. L. Rev. 2534 (1990). He is also a graduate of University of Maryland (B.S., Computer Science, 1999) and St. John's College in Santa Fe (B.A., 1989).
Christopher Francis, founder of Claims Interpreted, is an intellectual property attorney specializing in preparing and prosecuting U.S. and foreign patent applications as well as counseling clients on a full spectrum of intellectual property matters. Chris advises clients on strategically building and maintaining patent and trademark portfolios based on client product lines and business plans. He also assists clients with intellectual property due diligence investigations during mergers and acquisitions.
Chris has prepared and prosecuted mechanical and electrical patent applications in numerous technologies and industries and also counsels clients on patent issues including freedom to operate investigations, infringement and validity opinions, and designing products around patents owned by competitors. Prior to Bejin Bieneman, Chris was a partner in the intellectual property department of a metro-Detroit general practice law firm, where he gained experience in marrying client’s business needs and intellectual property needs.
Chris is a graduate of Wayne State University Law School (J.D., 2006) and Michigan State University College of Engineering (B.S., Mechanical Engineering, 2002). Prior to his legal career, Chris was an engineer at General Motors.
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