Keynote Speakers
Robert “Bob” Barchiesi
President
IACC
Robert (Bob) Barchiesi is President of the International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition (IACC). In this role, Bob leads one of the world’s oldest and largest trade associations representing exclusively the interests of over 250 companies concerned with trademark counterfeiting and the related theft of intellectual property.
Dawn Atlas
IACC Chairperson and Vice President
Enforcement and Assistant General Counsel
Calvin Klein
Dawn Atlas is the Vice President, Enforcement and Assistant General Counsel of Calvin Klein, Inc. She has been responsible for the worldwide enforcement of intellectual property for Calvin Klein for over 20 years.
Lieutenant General Bruno Buratti
Inspector General for Educational and High-Training Institutes
Guardia di Finanza
Lieutenant General Bruno Buratti was born in Rome in1961. He is married and has two daughters. He graduated from high school and was admitted to the Guardia di Finanza Academy in 1981.
Army Ferreira
Judge
Constitutional Court of the Dominican Republic
Lawyer. University Professor and conference speaker with a master’s degree in Intellectual Property, LL.M., Carlos III University of Madrid, Spain. Postgraduate degree in Fundamental Rights and Constitutional Guarantees awarded by the University of Castilla-La Mancha, Spain. Postgraduate degree in Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure, from the National Prosecutor’s School of Dominican Republic.
Raymond A. Tierney
District Attorney
Suffolk County New York
Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney is a career prosecutor, having served more than 29 years as a prosecutor at both the state and federal levels. Elected on November 2, 2021, he is committed to enforcing the law in an ethical and accountable manner to protect the citizens of Suffolk County.
Featured – Fireside Chat Speaker
Salvatore (Sal) Ingrassia
Port Director
John F. Kennedy (JFK) International Airport
Salvatore (Sal) Ingrassia is the Port Director, John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) New York Field Office (NYFO). Mr. Ingrassia is responsible for all CBP operations, including the processing of international passengers, $136 billion in imports, and over 60% of the international mail arriving into the United States.
Panel/Workshops Speakers
Wael Adhami
Senior Director, Global Brand Protection
Johnson & Johnson
Wael Adhami is Johnson & Johnson’s Senior Director for Global Brand Protection, responsible for the LATAM, EMEA and APAC regions, as well as for Product Security Investigations & Enforcement globally. Wael provides strategic direction on brand protection matters for J&J’s worldwide regions and works with leadership teams to protect patients, consumers and brand equity from counterfeiting, diversion/parallel import and product tampering.
Wael has an extensive international brand protection and security background and has also served on the Boards of various brand protection organizations and is a recognized international leader within the Brand Protection industry. Wael’s international leadership experience is critical in shaping the healthcare environment for J&J, particularly regarding patient safety aspects related to risks from illicit trade.
Aaron Aguilar
Sr Brand Protection Manager, Americas Region
Under Armour
Aaron currently oversees Under Armour’s Brand Protection Program for the Americas Region. With over 20 years of experience in IPR investigations and enforcement, Aaron has had the opportunity to see the continued growth and complexity of piracy and product counterfeiting operations. To meet the challenges these threats present to a brand’s image and reputation, a company’s Brand Protection program must provide measured value to the business and responsibly meet its obligations to external partners/authorities providing enforcement assistance. Prior to embarking in a career in Brand Protection, Aaron served as a law enforcement officer in Texas.
Saleem Alhabash, Ph.D.
Professor of Advertising and Public Relations
Michigan State University
Saleem Alhabash, Ph.D. is a Professor of Advertising and Public Relations at Michigan State University, where he also serves as the Associate Director of Research at MSU’s Center for Anti-Counterfeiting and Product Protection (A-CAPP). His research focuses on the persuasive effects of digital and social media. He has led collaborative studies focusing on understanding consumer behavior pertaining to the purchase and use of counterfeit goods. He co-authored A-CAPP’s 2023 Global Anti-Counterfeiting Consumer Survey, where the team surveyed over 13 thousand consumers from 17 countries. Saleem is leading other related studies at the A-CAPP Center focusing on purchase of medications online and the implications of AI to intellectual property and brand protection. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Missouri-Columbia.
Gabriela Baeza-Stout
Senior Associate
Armstrong Teasdale
Gabriela Baeza-Stout is an accomplished lawyer with experience both in-house and in private practice. She has experience in corporate and M&A matters, as well as in commercial transactions, and intellectual property. The focus of her practice in technology transactions includes drafting and negotiating master services agreements and statements of work for an array of technology fields, cloud-based subscription services agreements, online terms of use, terms of service and complex technology licenses. Gabriela is skilled at developing and implementing strategies for her clients to reduce risk and enhance efficiency. She is a true partner in every aspect of the client relationship, advising clients on a host of business matters including corporate governance, advertising and promotions.
Michael J. Ball
Acting Assistant Director
IPR Center
Michael Ball is the Acting Assistant Director for the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI)Global Trade Division (GTD) and is responsible for the operational activities for HSI GTD’s national programs related to Trade Enforcement, Intellectual Property Crimes, Wildlife and Environmental Crimes, U.S. Government Supply Chain Investigations, and Counter Proliferation investigations. Mr. Ball also serves as the Acting Director for the National Intellectual Property Rights Center (IPRC), where he coordinates the federal government’s response to combating global intellectual property theft, the enforcement of intellectual property rights violations, and the protection of public health and safety.
Ahmad Barasneh
Legal Consultant/Partner
Barasneh Intellectual Property
Ahmad Barasneh is a seasoned legal counsel with over 14 years of experience specializing in intellectual property. Currently a partner at Barasneh Intellectual Property, he has made a significant impact on brand protection for international companies across various industries, including FMCG, automotive, electronics, fashion, garments and others. Ahmad’s expertise includes providing strategic legal counsel on brand protection, consumer rights, investigation and anti-counterfeiting measures, as well as coordinating efforts with local authorities worldwide. He holds an LLM in International Commercial Law from the University of Glamorgan, UK, and a Law degree from the University of Jordan.
Adriana Barrera
Founder
BARLAW – Barrera & Asociados
Founder of Peruvian IP firm BARLAW – Barrera & Asociados, with 27 years of experience advising global corporations in Intellectual Property, crafting strategies for brand protection, enforcement and IP litigation. With LL.M at Franklin Pierce Law Center, Management Studies at PAD School of Management – Universidad Piura, postgraduate IP courses at Salamanca University and JD from Lima University. Active member of international associations. Was President of the IP Commission at the American Chamber of Commerce in Peru (2021-2022). Currently, is member of board of directors. Recognized as a leading lawyer by recognized international rankings and magazines.
Victor Barrett
Director of the Intellectual Property Rights Unit
Jamaica Constabulary Force
Victor has over 34 years Law Enforcement experience and is currently the Director of the Intellectual Property Rights Unit of the Jamaica Constabulary Force. Victor is an attorney who enjoys reading and watching football, and also an adjunct lecturer at the Caribbean Maritime University. He’s currently the Deputy Chairman of the Road Traffic Appeal Tribunal.
Victor has developed an expansive knowledge surrounding intellectual property rights at all levels, and is a member of the Jamaica Bar Association, the Kingston Cricket Club and Liguanea Club. He holds degrees in Management Studies and Accounting (BSc)– University of West Indies Mona; MSc Accounting – University of West Indies Mona, LLB- University of West Indies – Cave Hill; LEC- Norman Manley Law School; and LLM in International Commercial Law- University of Salford Manchester United Kingdom.
Taira D. Bell
Vice President, Global Brand Protection
Johnson & Johnson
Taira D. Bell is the VP, Global Brand Protection at J&J where she leads the enterprise-wide team responsible for protecting patients and products from the threat of illicit trade. Taira has over 27 years of experience in healthcare and has held various Supply Chain leadership roles at J&J including Procurement, Manufacturing, International Operations, New Product Innovation, Sales & Logistics and Customer Facing Innovation. She has a passion for coaching and developing future leaders through programs like Women in STEM2D, the African Ancestry Leadership Council (AALC), and other DEI programs. She holds leadership positions externally and is on the IACC Board of Directors.
Godfrey Budeli
Partner
Adams & Adams
Godfrey Budeli is a partner in the firm’s trade mark and copyright litigation section, and head of the anti-counterfeiting and anti-piracy team. He holds an LLB degree from the University of Pretoria and an LLM degree from the University of Cape Town. His area of speciality includes Customs Recordals and training of law enforcement officials, border and in-market enforcement, in-market survey and in-depth investigations, parallel or grey goods and online enforcement, civil High Court litigation and supporting criminal prosecution, watching brief relating to criminal cases in relation to anti-counterfeiting on the African continent.
He served on the firm’s Management Committee as the diversity representative for four years.
Diego Cervieri
Global IP Manager
Cervieri Monsuarez
Notary Public, Universidad de la República (2011). Certified Advanced Studies in Intellectual Property, Universidad Austral (2020).
Consultant specialized in IP issues; specialist in new ways of combating counterfeiting and online monitoring. He has been a speaker at national training sessions on the identification of counterfeits for Customs officers, National Police and members of the judicial system, as well as at numerous conferences on topics including: “Understanding the New China”, “Combating Trademark Counterfeiting”; “Piracy by signal receivers”; “Combating the commercialization of counterfeit products and trademark offenses”, and “Intellectual Property in the European Environment”. Member of INTA´s upcoming 2024-2025 “Committee term for the Trademark Office Practices Committee LATAM & Caribbean”. Member of the Board of AIPF (Association of Industrial Property Firms).
Virginia Cervieri
Senior Partner
Cervieri Monsuárez
Doctor in Law and Social Sciences and Postgraduate in Commercial Law, University of the Republic. Master in Intellectual Property. Specialist in trademark law and anti-piracy. Trademark Agent. Senior partner of Cervieri Monsuárez. President of the Chamber to Fight Piracy and Smuggling. President of the Uruguay chapter of the World Jurist Association. Former president of the CERTAL Uruguay Chapter. Founding member of the Permanent Commission in defense of Intellectual Property rights of the Ministry of the Interior. Member of the Anti-Counterfeit and Parallel Trade Team committee and the Sustainable Destruction sub-committee of MARQUES. Founder of Cervieri Monsuárez Foundation.
Spring Chang
Founding Partner
Chang Tsi & Partners
Spring Chang is the Founding Partner of a leading Chinese law firm Chang Tsi & Partners. With over three decades of experience, she has provided counsel and representation to numerous renowned companies across a broad range of industries. Her exceptional creativity and efficiency have earned her a reputation of sound judgement and a “wealth of experience in serving well-known multinationals”.
Spring has been widely recognized as one of the most influential IP lawyers in China and has been invited to share her extensive knowledge on the global practice of IP law with acclaimed legal associations and institutions.
Peter Colosi
Anti-Counterfeiting / Global Product Security
Gilead
Pete Colosi has been an attorney on Gilead’s Anti-Counterfeiting/Global Product Security Team since January 2020. Prior to that he was a partner at Sideman & Bancroft in San Francisco. He lives near Washington, D.C. with his wife and two daughters, and enjoys reading, cycling, and trying to get outside as much as possible.
Guadalupe Garcia Crespo
Brand Protection Manager
Mercado Libre
Brand Protection Manager at Mercado Libre. Attorney graduated from the University of Buenos Aires. Industrial Property Agent. Master degree in Intellectual Property Law from Austral University (pending thesis). Internet Law and Communications Technology Program from University of San Andrés. Training Course for IP Protection Lawyers from the Japanese Patent Office (scholarship winner). Prior to joining Mercado Libre in 2016, she worked in the Trademark Department at Marval, O’Farrell and Mairal in Buenos Aires.
Anna Dalla Val
Director of Brand Protection Strategic Partnerships
Amazon
Anna Dalla Val is the Director ofBrand Protection Strategic Partnerships at Amazon where she leads a global team dedicated to working with brands, industry associations, government regulators, and law enforcement to advance Amazon’s brand protection program. Prior to joining Amazon, Anna served as VP and Global Head of Intellectual Property at Ralph Lauren where she was responsible for global brand management and protection of the company’s intellectual property rights. A graduate of Columbia University Law School, Anna spent her early career in private practice. For several years, Anna has been recognized on WTR 300: The World’s Leading Corporate TrademarkProfessionals.
Andrés Díaz
AIT Enforcement
Andrés is passionate about building solid and trustworthy relationships with authorities to protect public health and IP in the Americas. He is an entrepreneur in the IP defense industry, with the highest ethical standards, a constant challenger of the status quo, and founder and Director of AIT Enforcement, a company that not only conducts state-of-the-art anti-counterfeit investigations but also commits to lead the law enforcement actions. Actions aimed to protect consumers, patients, and farmers, and to regain market share and safeguard corporate reputation. Before AIT Enforcement, Andres acquired valuable experience in the corporate sector over 16 years.
Daniel Dougherty
Senior Director
Alibaba International
Daniel Dougherty is a Senior Director with the Alibaba International Global IP Enforcement team where he partners with SMEs and multinational companies alike to advance IP protection on Alibaba International platforms. Daniel has held roles in other technology and e-commerce platforms managing international teams, litigation, enforcement and dispute management and IP portfolio management, and has served as Vice President & General Counsel for a consumer electronics company. Daniel has been named one of the 25 Most Influential People in the United States in Intellectual Property by The American Lawyer, and he currently sits on the EUIPO Observatory’s Cooperation with Intermediaries Expert Group and chairs the America Bar Association’s Anti-Counterfeiting & Piracy Committee.
Thomas Dougherty
Senior Counsel
U.S. Department of Justice Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS)
Thomas Dougherty is a Senior Counsel with the U.S. DOJ’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS). From 2015-2023, Mr. Dougherty established and led DOJ-implemented regional cybercrime and intellectual property crime capacity building programs in Southeast Asia and Eastern Europe. As a Senior Trial Attorney at CCIPS from 2007 to 2014, Mr. Dougherty investigated and prosecuted numerous large-scale, multi-jurisdictional intellectual property crime and cybercrime cases. Mr. Dougherty also served as an Assistant United States Attorney in Las Vegas, Nevada from 2001 to 2006 and a military prosecutor from 1995 to 2000.
Mike Dunn
President
Octane5
Mike is the current President and Chief Brand Officer of Octane5. He co-founded Octane5 in 2009 and is responsible for all sales, marketing and product development operations.
At Octane5, Mike was instrumental in developing a 10 year global partnership with De La Rue.
In 2021, Octane5 partnered with Crane Currency to deliver high security labels, hang tags and other micro-optic products to their customer base. Combined with loyalty-based consumer activation and brand compliance software, Octane5’s enterprise solution is being used by brands such as; Worldwide Business with Kathy Ireland,Harley-Davidson, Caterpillar, Ford, General Motors, ScottBrothers Living and Major League Baseball to name a few.
Tomas Elemans
Senior Manager-Brand Protection
PVH
Tomas Elemans graduated from the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam with a Master of Law. After, he started working for the Tommy Hilfiger legal team. In 2016 Tomas moved into a position as brand protection manager for Calvin Klein, responsible for IP and brand protection of the CK trademarks in the EMEA region.
Currently he is heading the Brand Protection team for PVH for the EMEA region. He is based in Amsterdam and works closely with the PVH global brand protection lead in NYC. He’s an advocate of brands and authorities working together more to share knowledge, data and best practices to make enforcement efforts more (cost) effective.
Diogo Erthal
Public Prosecutor
Public Prosecutor’s Office of Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil
Graduation in Law from the University of State of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)—Master’s degree in Criminal Law and Criminal Sciences from the University of Lisbon (Portugal)—Master’s degree in Evidence Law from the University of Girona (Spain)—Specialist in Public Security Intelligence (Brazil)—Participant in the International Visitor Leadership Program (DoS) on Investigating and Prosecuting Human Rights Violations—Member of the DOJ Working Group on Cryptoassets (Latin America)—Advanced Crypto Investigator (TRM and Chainalysis Certificates)—Public Prosecutor in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) since 2007, with experience in investigations involving digital evidence and organized crime.
Kendra Ervin
Deputy Chief for IP
Computer Crime & Intellectual Property SectionComputer Crime & Intellectual Property Section
U.S. Department of Justice
Kendra Ervin is the Deputy Chief for IP in the Computer Crime & Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS) of the U.S. Department of Justice. In her almost fourteen years with CCIPS, Ms. Ervin has prosecuted large-scale, multi-jurisdictional IP crimes; participated in domestic and international IP enforcement training and outreach; and helped to develop legislative and policy initiatives addressing all facets of IP crime. Prior to joining CCIPS, Ms. Ervin specialized in patent litigation at a large Washington, DC law firm. She earned her J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law, and her undergraduate degree from Emory University.
Rick Farnell
CEO
Tracer
Rick Farnell, a seasoned entrepreneur, and technology industry leader, brings a wealth of experience to his role as CEO of Tracer. Its advanced AI platform is setting new standards in detecting, analyzing, and removing brand abuse with unmatched accuracy, speed, and scale. Tracer combats digital brand abuse, phishing, counterfeiting and safeguards genuine consumer engagement, delivering external threat intelligence to fast growing startups and the most recognized global brands. With a distinguished background as Co-Founder of Think Big Analytics, and the former CEO of Protegrity, Rick has been honored as one of the Top 25 Cybersecurity CEOs of 2021.
Peter N. Fowler
Senior Counsel for Enforcement Office of Policy and International Affairs
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Peter Fowler is Senior Counsel,Office of Policy and International Affairs, USPTO, previously served as Chief of Staff, and Regional IP Attaché for SEAsia, advises on APEC, and has participated on trade negotiations with Australia, Bahrain, Malaysia, Oman, Thailand, UAE, Vietnam, and served on the U.S.negotiating teams for ACTA, TPP, and USMCA.
Admitted in California, where he practiced copyright and entertainment law prior to Federal service, he has authored law review articles and commentaries on ASEAN, copyright and fair use, IP and trade; and the contribution of judges to capacity building on IP enforcement.
He has a BA from John Carroll University; MA fromUniversity of Alabama; MA from Ball State University; and JD from Golden Gate University School of Law.
Diego Gomez
Counsel
Supreme New York
Diego Gomez was born, raised and attended law school in New York. He is currently Counsel for Supreme supporting the Company on a broad range of matters but specializes in Transactions and Intellectual Property, including international brand protection initiatives, trademark prosecution, product design clearance, and product collaboration agreements. Prior to joining Supreme, Diego was an associate in the Trademark and Brand Enforcement Group at Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz supporting clients on international trademark prosecution and enforcement across a number of industries, including fashion, art, retail, and food/beverage. His appreciation for fashion and art have strongly influenced the trajectory of his legal career.
Charisma Hampton
Attorney-Advisor, Office of Policy & International Affairs
U.S. Patent & Trademark Office
Charisma Hampton is an attorney-advisor with the Office of Policy and International Affairs at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Within theOffice of Policy and International Affairs, Ms. Hampton works on the Enforcement team and provides policy leadership, advocacy, capacity-building and technical expertise on domestic and international intellectual property enforcement matters.
Ms. Hampton works with foreign governments and U.S. agencies on the substantive legal and technical analysis of intellectual property rights enforcement laws, judicial regimes, civil and criminal procedures, border measures and administrative regulations relating to the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights. Currently, her regional portfolio includes countries in the Caribbean andCentral and South America.
Samantha Hand
Senior Director, Global Trade/Enterprise Functions Healthcare Compliance
Johnson & Johnson
Samantha Hand, SeniorDirector, Global Trade/Enterprise Functions HealthcareCompliance, Johnson & Johnson started her career in the pharmaceutical sector where she held numerous sales positions before transitioning to an in-house. She has spent the last 14 years with Health Care Compliance in training, Government Contract & Pricing Compliance and as a Health Care Compliance Officer.
In her current position as Global HCCO for Global Trade/Enterprise Functions, Johnson & Johnson, she is responsible for strategic leadership and oversight of Global Trade and HCC/Healthcare Business Integrity compliance activities of departments across J&J, Supply Chain, Worldwide Government Affairs & Policy, and Corporate Functions.
Axel Hein
Managing Director
ApiraSol GmbH
Axel is widely recognized as an expert in Brand Protection, Supply Chain Intelligence and Investigations. He has a background in diverse disciplines, including six sigma and innovation consulting. Since 2010, he has been engaged in Brand Protection, co-founding and managing ApiraSol GmbH in Germany.
Axel has contributed to the fight against counterfeits with game-changing technical innovations. Axel has a Master’s degree in International Business Consulting, with a focus on Supply Chain Management.
Laetitia Jouhaud
Principal Brand Protection Manager
GoPro
Laetitia has been protecting GoPro’s IP and sales globally for about 8 years. While GoPro’s Brand Protection team went from 5 to 2 members, the program has been successful with its proactive and aggressive IP enforcement and grey market mitigative programs. GoPro’s brand strength is mainly due to a company culture that is devoted and passionate. Through various collaborations across the company, and external partnerships, GoPro has cut its grey market issue by 70%, and ecomm abuse by 90% over the last 3 years.
Erin Karp
Senior Paralegal
Dr. Seuss Enterprises
Erin Karp is the Senior Paralegal at Dr. Seuss Enterprises, based in San Diego, CA, and she has been with Dr. Seuss for almost three years. She manages the company’s global trademark and copyright portfolios and enforcement program, focusing on prosecution, strategy, and disputes.
Prior to joining Dr. Seuss, Erin was a Paralegal at Fish & Richardson, where she worked on trademark and copyright matters for top brands and start-ups. She received her Paralegal Certificate with Honors from the University of San Diego and currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Tom Homann LGBTQ+ Law Association.
Kimberly Kocienki
CEO
SPLiCE
As co-founder and CEO of SPLiCE, its important to me that we make a difference every day as a Licensor & Brand Owner Think-Tank. With great passion, I lead collaborative benchmark exercises for business efficiency. Studies encompass brand equity awareness, social & environmental accountability, anti-counterfeiting, regulatory compliance, eComm, royalty management, and legal best practices since 2004. Thought Leadership tools created include scorecards, playbooks, project planning tools, and organizational matrices. Today, I continue to optimize benchmark collaboration through Design Thinking. Since 2003, it has enabled me to facilitate energetic conversations that impact brand licensing globally, which enhances education and heightens awareness with a 360-lens. Making a difference, matters.
Kristen Kozlowski
Manager, Brand Protection
New Era Cap, LLC
Kristen Kozlowski is a passionate Brand Protection expert who is incredibly dedicated to tracking down those attempting to damage the New Era brand. Kristen’s journey with New Era Cap began primarily focusing on gray market investigations. Her role expanded rapidly as she demonstrated her ability to manage complex investigations. Kristen is not just an internal force; she’s also an industry ambassador, attending conferences and training events sharing insights on anti-counterfeiting strategies. Kristen leads anti-counterfeiting efforts globally at New Era Cap where she ensures that New Era’s brand integrity remains intact. Her work extends beyond borders, collaborating with law enforcement agencies, legal experts, and industry partners worldwide.
Jennie Martel
Chief of Global Brand Protection
Colgate-Palmolive Company
Jennie Martel is an experienced global brand protection and related strategy, operations, and sustainability leader. Based in New York, Jennie leads Global Brand Protection at Colgate-Palmolive Company working to ensure that people and pets everywhere have uninterrupted access to safe products while also promoting responsible disposal of counterfeits and other illicit goods.
Before joining Colgate, Jennie led the trademark, copyright, and anticounterfeiting functions for Stanley Black & Decker. Jennie is often recognized for her work with honors and awards, speaking opportunities, and participation in high-profile teams.
Jennie serves on several boards, including those of the IACC and Watkins-Conti Products, Inc., and committees, including 50/50 Women on Boards’ NYC Leadership Committee. She’s also an engaged member of select executive women’s networks, including Chief.
Diana Martinez
Counsel and Head of the IP Enforcement Department
Arochi & Lindner Mexico
Diana Martinez is of Counsel and head of the IP Enforcement department of Arochi & Lindner’s Mexico office. She has extensive expertise developing anti-counterfeiting and anti-piracy strategies to protect and enforce the intellectual property rights of leading companies in a variety of industries. Diana has successfully litigated administrative and criminal proceedings before the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property (IMPI), the Federal Courts, the Mexican Attorney General’s Office. Diana holds a Law Degree as well as specialization studies in Criminal Law. She is member of various national and international associations and is a frequent speaker at several international associations’ conferences.
Andrew Masterson
A/Detective Inspector
PIPCU
City of London Police
Andrew has over 16 years of Law enforcement experience, with a varied career in Policing covering, public order, specialist counter terrorism, disaster victim identification, serious and complex crime investigation.
Since 2019, Andrew has worked in the City of London Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) in starting as the Disruptions and Engagement lead for PIPCU. He now leads the online disruptions operations Creative and Ashiko and he has now taken on the role as Inspector for the unit, leading on the tactical deployment of the unit as well as the online operations.
Paul May
Vice President, Creative & Production
The Op (USAopoly)
Currently serving as Vice President, Creative & Production for The Op (USAopoly) and has been working with USAopoly since 1994.
Prior to being at USAopoly, he was Pre-Press Manager for a local printing company in San Diego after finishing his enlistment in the United States Marine Corps.
Intricately involved in all aspects of the creative and manufacturing process. Involvement with manufacturing also involves combatting the production and distribution of counterfeit goods. Program member of the IACC (International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition) since 2019 and the Alibaba SME Advisory Committee (SAC) since 2020.
Lieutenant Colonel Francesco Mazza
Guardia di Finanza
Lieutenant Colonel Francesco Mazzais a senior officer of the Guardia di Finanza, the Italian military Corps with exclusive competence in counteracting economic and financial criminality. He enlisted in the Guardia di Finanza in September 2000 and has served in several territorial and operational units, mainly in southern Italy.
Throughout his career, he has conducted investigations on IP crimes and illegal sales of unsafe and dangerous products to the detriment of consumer health.Currently, he attends the 51st Economic-Financial Police Senior Course ,i.e.a two-year top qualification programme, held at the Economic-Financial Police School in Rome.
Angelo Mazza
Partner
Gibney
Angelo Mazza counsels clients on brand protection and enforcement strategies and works extensively with law enforcement on IP related crimes. He’s trained over 65,000 law enforcement officials including CBP, HSI, FBI and local departments. Angelo is at the forefront of anti-counterfeiting matters. He actively participates in US Chamber of Commerce efforts to implement anti-counterfeiting policy changes and best practices. Angelo has also developed a strong focus on internet matters. He manages Gibney’s Internet Enforcement Program, monitoring counterfeit activity including online marketplaces, sites, social media platforms and other emerging technologies. Angelo is a frequent speaker on issues such as developing effective brand protection training programs and strategies, enforcement programs, and social media and technology trends.
Owen McIntyre
Operations Director
ChaseWaterford (PTY) LTD
A former member of the South African Police Services (SAPS), Owen spent the majority of his 10 years’ service in the Presidential Protection Unit, as a close protection officer with two State Presidents, including President Nelson Mandela.
Owen subsequently joined the private security sector and has been providing specialized consultancy services to a cross-industry client base including auditing and the design and development of security management systems for a range of businesses including the pharmaceutical industry.
Owen is also responsible for the IPR Division and has been coordinating anti-counterfeit operations in several countries throughout Africa for the last 13 years. He manages teams of investigators responsible for conducting market research, investigations and enforcement operations.
Morgan N. McPherson
Senior Attorney-Advisor
Intellectual Property Enforcement Branch
Regulations and Rulings | Office of Trade | CBP
Morgan McPherson serves as an Attorney-Advisor in the Intellectual Property Enforcement Branch within U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Trade, providing legal guidance to all Ports of Entry regarding IP-related seizures, adjudicating administrative petitions for relief from seizure, administering CBP’s e-Recordation program, and providing capacity building trainings to CBP personnel, partner government agencies, foreign trading partners, and the trade community. Previously, Morgan worked in the Cargo Security, Carriers & Restricted Merchandise Branch where she issued advance rulings on the admissibility of merchandise. Morgan received a BS in Business & Enterprise Management from Wake Forest University as well as a J.D. from Wake Forest University School of Law.
She is admitted to the North Carolina Bar and the D.C. Bar.
Julie Mejia
LA Regional Brand Protection Director
Procter & Gamble
Since July 2013 she has been the responsible for the brand protection program for Latin America, implementing a Global business-oriented strategy, working with External Partners and US Protection Agencies (Customs, CIA); and with partners like INTERPOL, OLAF.
She has been focusing on developing the global strategies for the Brand Protection team in the region, including:
- Training internally and externally; Keeping the programme top of mind, relevant and directly helping to build the business.
- Managing vendors and leveraging relationships with main authorities for investigations and surveys to increase awareness and a zero-tolerance message among consumers.
- Focusing on how to make our products easier to identify and harder to copy.
Khadija Ngasongwa
Director of the Anti Counterfeits Division
Fair Competition Commission –Tanzania
Over 16 years’ legal experience with specialty in Competition Law, Intellectual PropertyRights Law, Trademark Aspects, International Business Law. Being the Director of theAntiCounterfeits Division in Tanzania has provided a tremendous exposure to enforceIPR cases, including seizures of counterfeit items valued at more than $20M USD within a three-year period. Over 10 years of practice as an advocate representing the government and as a consultant to various institutions, private entities, legal firms, andNGOs. Ms. Ngasongwa is the team expert on Competition, Counterfeit Law, BorderControls, and Customs and Regulatory Law. Her extensive experience and skills were gained during prominent positions with the Government of Tanzania and MultinationalOrganizations with trade ad economic regulatory sectors.
Rain Ni
Senior Corporate Counsel
Amazon – Counterfeit Crimes Unit
Rain Ni, Senior Corporate Counsel of Amazon’s Counterfeit Crimes Unit. Rain has more than 20 years of working experience in the field of intellectual property protection. She has worked for well-known multinational companies responsible for brand protection in APAC, and worked in an intellectual property law firm from UK for many years. She is currently the head of Amazon’s Counterfeit Crime Unit in China, leading the local team to pursue the responsibility of counterfeiters and stop them from abusing Amazon stores across the industry.
Fabiano Gonçalves Cossermelli Oliveira
Public Prosecutor
Public Prosecutor’s Office of Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil
Fabiano Gonçalves Cossermelli Oliveira is a graduate of the University Salesiana de Lorena Law School and has been a public prosecutor in the State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, since 2006. He was a member of the Rio Organized Crime Strike Force until 2023 and also led public corruption investigations in Rio from 2021–2023, including the investigation and prosecution of IPR-linked public corruption matters in Rio. Fabiano is a member of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Cryptocurrency Working Group for the Southern Cone and has served in an advisory capacity on cryptocurrency matters for prosecutors throughout Brazil and the Southern Cone.
Jason Petri
Criminal Enterprise Investigation Section
New York Police Department
Detective Jason Petri with NYPD’s Criminal Enterprise Investigation Section for the last 18 years. Task Force Officer with Homeland Security Investigations for the last 9 years. NYPD’S Expert witness on international smuggling and intellectual property rights cases. Works collaboratively with federal and state law enforcement as well as the private industry to identify and eliminate IPR threats as well as identify and dismantle the financial networks that support, fund and profit from these crimes.
David Pounds
Sr. Program Manager, Brand Protection Strategic Partnerships Team
Amazon
David Pounds is a Sr. Program Manager in Amazon’s Brand Protection Strategic Partnerships (BPSP) team. He has worked in Brand Protection for 14 years, joining Amazon from an AMLAW 50 law firm where he was an e-Crime Investigator. David’s prior experience includes serving as Head of Anti-Counterfeiting and Intellectual Property Policy & Operations at Walmart, Principal Brand Protection Specialist at Symantec, and brand protection analyst and manager for several brand protection service providers.
Cesar Schiaffino Davison
UNODC
Entrenador Regional del Programa Global de Contenedores (PCBT), para Latinoamérica y el Caribe; Programa de la Oficina de las Naciones Unidas contra la Droga y el Delito (UNODC) y la Organización Mundial de Aduanas (OMA), has been a member of the Uruguayan Customs from 1989 to 2013. Until December 2021, he worked at the WCO and since December, 2021, he works for UNODC as a Lac Regional Trainer.
Donna Schmitt
Partner
Armstrong Teasdale
Donna Schmitt is a partner at and Lead for Armstrong Teasdale’s Trademark Services Group. Businesses in a variety of industries look to Donna to handle domestic and foreign trademark prosecution and for guidance on trademark selection, use, registration, policing, protection, infringement and enforcement. She also advises on commercialization of intellectual property through licensing. Donna counsels on domain name registration and use of trademarks and copyrights in social media. As part of her practice, Donna works to identify trends and new tools to enforce intellectual property rights and manages oppositions and cancellations at the United States Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.
Daniel Shapiro
Senior Vice President, Strategic Partnerships & Brand Relationships
Red Points
After working at Macy’s and eBay, Daniel joined Red Points to lead the company’s strategic partnership with eCommerce platforms, websites, Intellectual Property firms, and other stakeholders. Daniel was a Senior Manager of Brand Protection at eBay for almost 8 years, where he led international teams in the disruption of counterfeits worldwide.
Daniel is also the host of the Heroes of Brand Protection podcast. The show, powered by Red Points, follows the stories of anti-counterfeiting and brand protection leaders from well-known companies all over the globe.
DeeJay Smith
Head of Global eCommerce and Brand Protection
LifeScan
DeeJay is a dynamic leader with an expert understanding of global brand protection, as well as a highly successful sales career. Currently, DeeJay is the Head of Global eCommerce and Brand Protection at LifeScan, a global leader in blood glucose monitoring. Previously, he served as President of eLight Consulting, where he advised clients on anti-counterfeiting, anti-diversion, and third-party online marketplaces. Prior to consulting, DeeJay worked at Procter & Gamble (P&G) for 31 years. Externally, he is recognized by many government agencies as a Brand Protection Leader within the Consumer Products/Medical Device industries. He also sat on the IACC BOD for 10 years. DeeJay has a B.S. in business and marketing from Brigham Young University.
Maja Szumarska
Partner
Gibney, Anthony & Flaherty LLP
Maja Szumarska is a partner at the law firm of Gibney, Anthony & Flaherty LLP, focusing her practice on the enforcement of IP rights. She has represented prominent fashion and luxury brands in litigation involving trademark, trade dress, and copyright infringement, and unfair competition. Maja specializes in brand protection and has developed online enforcement strategies for clients across various platforms, including online marketplaces, social media platforms, on-demand printers, NFT marketplaces and 3D digital product marketplaces. With a strong passion for emerging technologies, she has focused her practice on advising clients on legal issues related to blockchain technology and artificial intelligence.
Zach Toczyński
Sr. Director of Global Brand Protection
Levi Strauss & Co.
In 2013, Zach Toczyński joined Levi Strauss & Co. as Sr. Director of Global Brand Protection overseeing all global programs related to Anti-Counterfeiting, online enforcement, trademark infringement, and IP policy matters for LS&Co. brands Levi’s®, Beyond Yoga®, Dockers®, DENIZEN® and Signature by Levi Strauss & Co.™. Before his position at Levi Strauss & Co., Zach worked for the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), where he spent over 13 years as Senior Manager, Anti-Piracy Training and Investigations. Zach holds a Bachelors of Arts in Public Communication from the State University of New York at Buffalo.
Kiyoshi Tsuru
Founding Partner
TMI Abogados
Founding partner, TMI Abogados; Arbiter, World Intellectual Property Organization; Chair of the Intellectual Property Section of the Private Sector Advisory Council for the USMCA and the EU-Mexico FTA; Member of the Board of Trustees of the Mexican Bar Association Foundation; Founder and President of the ICT Committee of the Mexican Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AMPPI); Founder and past President of the Intellectual Property Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce Mexico (AMCHAM); Founder and past President of the Technology Law Committee of the Mexican Bar Association.
JD, Universidad Iberoamericana (1999) with honors; LLM in Intellectual Property law from The George Washington University (2002).
Professor of Law, Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM).
Alaina van Horn
Chief of the Intellectual Property Enforcement Branch
Office of Trade
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Alaina van Horn serves as the Chief of the Intellectual Property Enforcement (IPE) Branch of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Trade, that is responsible for administering CBP’s nationwide intellectual property border enforcement program. The IPE Branch administers the e-Recordation program, provides infringement determinations to CBP personnel stationed at all 328 ports of entry, issues binding rulings to the trade, and circulates nationwide guidance on interpretation and enforcement of IP rights. The IPE Branch is responsible for educating the CBP workforce on proper border enforcement procedures, serves as technical legal experts for all intellectual property legislation enforced by CBP, drafts agency regulations and serves as the subject matter expert for international capacity building missions.
Dr. Xinghao Wang
Director of Global IP Enforcement Team
Alibaba Group
Xinghao joined Alibaba in January 2015, and is a member of Global IP Enforcement team. He works with international brands and retail partners, industry associations, government regulators, law enforcement and other organizations to advance Alibaba Group’s IP protection efforts. Before joining Alibaba, he was an IP attorney at HSML in Minneapolis and focused on helping US companies protect their IP rights in the US as well as in China.
Emma Warbey
Detective Chief Inspector
City of London Police
I have been in the City of London Police for 25 years, working across all areas of Policing including response, child protection and custody. I have worked in the National Lead Force for Fraud for 6 years and most recently in The Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit. The unit has been established for over 10 years – protecting intellectual property crime and combatting online piracy. PIPCUs mission is to investigate, disrupt and prevent intellectual property crime that causes significant harm to the UK economy and public.
I live in the UK and have 8 year old identical twin girls, I love being outdoors, walking, running and playing football.
Evan Williams
Senior Director
Alibaba International Global IP Enforcement
Evan Williams is a Senior Director with Alibaba International Global IP Enforcement. Evan works with government and rights holders to eliminate online trafficking of counterfeit goods on Alibaba’s e-commerce platforms and to pursue counterfeiters offline. Evan served previously as
Senior Counsel in the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section. From 2016-2021, Evan was detailed to the U.S. Consulate General in Hong Kong as DOJ’s International Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property Attorney-Advisor for Asia, where he acquired his Chinese name, 韋義榮. Evan is a graduate of Harvard College and Columbia Law School.
Dr. Jeremy Wilson
Director, Police Staffing Observatory
Michigan State University
Dr. Jeremy Wilson is a Professor of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University, where he founded the Police Staffing Observatory and Center for Anti-Counterfeiting and Product Protection. As a scholar, educator, advisor, and consultant, he has collaborated with numerous private and public entities on complex public safety problems. He has led over $14M in research resulting in over 175 publications on brand protection, product counterfeiting, workforce building, resource optimization/ROI, performance assessment, and organizational consolidation. His recent book, Brand Protection and the Global Risk of Product Counterfeits: A Total Business Solution Approach, won the Outstanding Book Award by the American Society of Criminology’s Division on White Collar and Corporate Crime.
Jasmine Xu
Senior Manager of Global IP Enforcement Team
Alibaba Group
Jasmine Xu serves as Senior Manager of Global IP Enforcement Team, Alibaba Group. She joined the Global IP Enforcement team in 2021, and has been working with international stakeholders on IPR concerns.
She joined Alibaba Group in August 2018 as Senior Manager, Public Affairs Department. She has more than 10 years of work experience in international relations and cross-cultural communication. Prior to Alibaba, Jasmine has worked for the Consulates General of Canada and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in China. She holds an MPhil degree from the University of Cambridge.
Adward Yudin
Director of Development for the US and EU
BrandMonitor
Adward Yudin brings a proven track record of forging impactful relationships and implementing innovative solutions as the Development Director at BrandMonitor. He plays a pivotal role in advancing the firm’s mission to safeguard brands against infringement and counterfeiting.
Adward places a strong emphasis on valuing people as the cornerstone of building an excellent company. He firmly believes that a company’s success is fundamentally rooted in the talent, dedication, and collective effort of its team members.
Understanding the challenges faced by global brands in protecting their intellectual property assets, Adward collaborates closely with clients to tailor brand protection strategies that preserve brand integrity.
John Zacharia
Founder
Zacharia Law PLLC
John Zacharia is the Founder of Zacharia Law PLLC, a law firm dedicated to helping clients protect and enforce their intellectual property (IP) rights. Previously, John was the Assistant Deputy Chief for Litigation of the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS) of the United States Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, where he became one of the most experienced federal prosecutors of IP crime in the U.S. John has written extensively about the regulation of e-commerce platforms and the impact of artificial intelligence on IP. John currently teaches IP Criminal Law at the George Washington University School of Law.
Roundtable Hosts
George Adams
Brand Protection Strategic Partnerships Manager
Amazon
George Adams is a Brand Protection Strategic Partnerships Manager at Amazon. In his current role, he leads Amazon’s Brand Protection efforts with the North America automotive industry, and co-manages the IACC-Amazon Program. During his career, he has worked with brands spanning many industries, including auto, consumer goods, medical devices, media, beauty, and wellness. George holds a Master’s degree in Criminal Justice from Michigan State University.
John Cabeca
IP Counselor for South Asia
U.S. Patent & Trademark Office
John Cabeca is the U.S. intellectual property (IP) counselor for South Asia, serving Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Working through the U.S. embassy in Delhi, India, Mr. Cabeca is the principal officer within the U.S. embassies and consulates throughout South Asia on matters related to the protection and enforcement of IP rights. His duties include assisting U.S. companies doing business in the region; advocating for effective IP policies; advising ambassadors and other U.S. government officials on foreign governments’ IP practices; educating foreign government officials, students, entrepreneurs, startups, and business representatives on the IP landscape; and conducting public awareness programs to support a strong and vibrant IP system globally.
Mr. Cabeca has more than 30 years of experience working at the USPTO. Prior to assuming his role as IP attaché, he served as the regional director for the Silicon Valley USPTO in San Jose, California, establishing the office and relentlessly advocating for the needs of IP stakeholders. In 2020, he received an honorable commendation from the City of San Jose for his leadership and service to the diverse and innovative region responsible for more than 37% of domestic patent applications and 28% of trademark registrations annually.
Christine Casaceli
Senior Attorney
Temu
I am currently a Senior Attorney at Temu where I oversee Intellectual Property and Product Regulatory Compliance for the U.S. Prior to coming to Temu, I worked at an e-commerce Amazon aggregator start-up where I managed IP, Litigation, and Product Compliance. I began my career at Hasbro where I spent six years working as an IP and e-commerce attorney.
Daniel Dougherty
Senior Director
Alibaba International
Daniel Dougherty is a Senior Director with the Alibaba International Global IP Enforcement team where he partners with SMEs and multinational companies alike to advance IP protection on Alibaba International platforms. Daniel has held roles in other technology and e-commerce platforms managing international teams, litigation, enforcement and dispute management and IP portfolio management, and has served as Vice President & General Counsel for a consumer electronics company. Daniel has been named one of the 25 Most Influential People in the United States in Intellectual Property by The American Lawyer, and he currently sits on the EUIPO Observatory’s Cooperation with Intermediaries Expert Group and chairs the America Bar Association’s Anti-Counterfeiting & Piracy Committee.
Julien Dudouit
Deputy Head of Global Brand Relations
eBay
Julien Dudouit is Deputy Head of Global Brand Relations for eBay, responsible for supporting Rights Owners in protecting their Trademarks and Copyrights by managing the Verified Rights Owner programme (VeRO) on eBay’s platforms globally. Prior to this, Julien was closely involved in implementing eBay’s anti-counterfeit operational strategy. Julien holds a bachelor’s degree in Business and Management and has been working on Anti-Piracy matters for the past eighteen years.
Becca Felsenthal
Associate General Counsel, IP
Meta
Becca Felsenthal is an Associate General Counsel, IP at Meta, where she advises on intermediary liability issues involving trademark infringement and counterfeiting on Facebook and Instagram. Prior to Meta, she counseled technology, sports, and retail businesses on litigation and intellectual property matters.
Gabriele Gagliani
IP Specialist
U.S. Patent & Trademark Office
Intellectual Property Specialist for the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland, and United Kingdom. (The IP Attaché at the U.S Mission to the European Union, Rachel Bae, will be unable to attend. Gabriele will represent her.) Gabriele Gagliani is a European National and a licensed attorney who works for the United States Department of Commerce out of the U.S. Mission to the European Union to advocate for effective Intellectual Property policies in European Union institutions and in its Member States, contribute to bilateral Intellectual Property-related discussions, and assist U.S. stakeholders in the registration, monitoring and defense of their Intellectual Property Rights.
Guadalupe Garcia Crespo
Brand Protection Manager
Mercado Libre
Brand Protection Manager at Mercado Libre. Attorney graduated from the University of Buenos Aires. Industrial Property Agent. Master degree in Intellectual Property Law from Austral University (pending thesis). Internet Law and Communications Technology Program from University of San Andrés. Training Course for IP Protection Lawyers from the Japanese Patent Office (scholarship winner). Prior to joining Mercado Libre in 2016, she worked in the Trademark Department at Marval, O’Farrell and Mairal in Buenos Aires.
Christine Kao
Associate General Counsel, IP
Meta
Christine Kao is an Associate General Counsel, IP at Meta, where she leads the team that focuses on intermediary liability issues involving trademark infringement and counterfeiting. Prior to Facebook, she led the Intellectual Property Policy team at Twitter.
David Kellis
IP Attaché for Brazil
U.S. Patent & Trademark Office
As one of two U.S. intellectual property (IP) attachés assigned to South America, David Kellis is the Rio de Janeiro-based principal officer on matters related to the protection and enforcement of IP rights within U.S. embassies and consulates throughout Argentina, Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Suriname, Uruguay, and Venezuela. His duties include advocating for the U.S. IP interests abroad by promoting high standards of IP protection and enforcement in the region; assisting U.S. companies; advising U.S. government officials on IP matters; educating foreign government officials, students, entrepreneurs, and business representatives on IP matters; and conducting public awareness programs.
Prior to his appointment, Mr. Kellis was a shareholder at Sheridan Ross PC in the Denver, Colorado, area. His practice involved working with clients to build and manage global patent portfolios, counseling clients regarding IP issues, drafting and negotiating IP-related agreements, and representing clients in all phases of litigation. Mr. Kellis also taught patent law as an adjunct professor at the University of Colorado Law School.
Stefio Kurniadi
AVP of Trust and Safety
Bukalapak
Stefio is the AVP of Trust and Safety at Bukalapak, leading efforts to combat counterfeiting and ensure a secure online marketplace. With a focus on anti-fraud measures and tackling criminal activities in e-commerce, We work closely with brand owners and regulators to protect intellectual property rights and foster trust among users. Passionate about leveraging technology and partnerships to maintain integrity in the digital landscape.
Mike Liu
Head of Trust and Safety Group
Temu
My name is Mike Liu and I am the head of Trust and Safety Group at Temu. I am leading the operation and policy teams for Intellectual Property Protection and Product Compliance. I started my career as Brand Risk Management professional at PayPal and have been in various roles of legal and regulatory compliance in e-commerce industry for 15 years.
David Pounds
Senior Program Manager
Amazon
David Pounds is a Sr. Program Manager in Amazon’s Brand Protection Strategic Partnerships (BPSP) team. He has worked in Brand Protection for 14 years, joining Amazon from an AMLAW 50 law firm where he was an e-Crime Investigator. David’s prior experience includes serving as Head of Anti-Counterfeiting and Intellectual Property Policy & Operations at Walmart, Principal Brand Protection Specialist at Symantec, and brand protection analyst and manager for several brand protection service providers.
Carl Schonander
Senior Director for Global Public Affairs and Partnerships
Tencent
Carl Schonander is Senior Director for Global Public Affairs and Partnerships at Tencent. Schonander focuses on the Americas, intellectual property rights, and trust & safety technology policy issues. Prior to Tencent, Schonander held senior positions at Global Digital Finance and the Software & Information Industry Association. Carl also has extensive government experience having worked at the Department of State in Washington, D.C., as well as in Canada, Bangladesh, Haiti, Mexico, Brazil and Spain. His last assignment at the Department of State was at the Office of Intellectual Property Enforcement. Schonander has an LLM in intellectual property law from George Washington University, a Masters in Public Policy from the LBJ School of Public Affairs, and a J.D. from the University of Stockholm.
Brittany Shaw
North America Leader, Brand Protection Strategic Partnerships
Amazon
Brittany Shaw is the North America Leader of Amazon Brand Protection Strategic Partnerships. She has been in the brand protection industry since 2011 and has had the privilege to work with a variety of brands across the pharmaceutical, supplements, consumer goods, apparel and footwear, luxury, toy, and sports leagues industries. In her current capacity at Amazon, she focuses on setting strategies to engage and collaborate with the brand protection community to drive innovation and progress toward furthering ultimate consumer confidence in purchasing legitimate and safe products in Amazon stores.
Elizabeth Snukst
Sr. Director, eCommerce Compliance
Walmart
Elizabeth Snukst is a Sr. Director at Walmart Inc., where she manages the eCommerce Compliance teams responsible for mitigating risk on Walmart’s eCommerce platforms, including enforcing intellectual property and anti-counterfeit policies. Elizabeth previous roles at Walmart include managing Operations teams and Product teams for the Walmart US eCommerce site.
Before Walmart, Elizabeth spent 10+ years working as a product manager for Oracle Corp. and Visa Inc. for consumer-facing applications (e.g., HR, Financials) and internal facing applications (e.g., disaster recovery, vendor management).
In her spare time, Elizabeth enjoys hiking and cycling on local trails in the Bay Area.
Dion Tang
Brand Owner Engagement Manager, eCommerce Compliance
Walmart
Dion Tang is the Manager of Brand Owner Engagement at Walmart. She manages the Walmart Brand Portal and supports the development of various intellectual property and anticounterfeit initiatives. Prior to joining Walmart, Dion worked at the IACC where she collaborated with e-commerce intermediaries to develop IP enforcement solutions that benefited the broader rights owner community.
Dr. Xinghao Wang
Director of Global IP Enforcement Team
Alibaba Group
Xinghao joined Alibaba in January 2015, and is a member of Global IP Enforcement team. He works with international brands and retail partners, industry associations, government regulators, law enforcement and other organizations to advance Alibaba Group’s IP protection efforts. Before joining Alibaba, he was an IP attorney at HSML in Minneapolis and focused on helping US companies protect their IP rights in the US as well as in China.
Duncan Willson
Attorney-Advisor
U.S. Patent & Trademark Office
Duncan served as the intellectual property (IP) Counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, China until 2023, and is currently an Attorney-Advisor in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Office of Policy and International Affairs (OPIA), where he handles policy matters relating to IP issues in China. As both the former IP Counselor and current Attorney-Advisor, he promotes U.S. stakeholder interests by advocating for improvements in China’s protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights (IPR), including patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. In addition, Mr. Willson serves as a resource for U.S. individuals and businesses in regard to IPR concerns in China. Prior to his appointment as IP Counselor, Mr. Willson was at OPIA, and his responsibilities included developing and negotiating U.S. positions on IP matters on behalf of the U.S. government; advising the U.S. government and business community on legal developments in China that impact the protection and enforcement of IP in that country; and designing and supervising technical assistance to the Chinese government in regard to IP.