Volunteer Spotlight: Jennifer Mikulina

Published: March 1, 2020

Ken Taylor Com Laude Chicago, Illinois, USA

Jennifer Mikulina is a partner with the law firm McDermott Will & Emery based in Chicago, Illinois. For the past six years, she has served as head of the firm’s Global Trademark Prosecution Practice and is also co-chair of the firm’s Gender Diversity Committee.

Ms. Mikulina has worked in the trademark field for close to 20 years and has been a member of INTA since 2002. Her committee work at INTA includes four years with the Pro Bono Committee (including several working group leadership roles) and four years with the Law Firm Committee, where she currently serves as vice chair. She is also working with the In-House Practitioners Committee on a checklist for tax-based trademark license structures and is a member of the IP Law Firm of the Future Think Tank Task Force. In November 2013, Jennifer was honored by the Association with a Volunteer Service Award in the “Pro Bono Services Provided by Organizations” category.

In addition to traditional trademark clearance and prosecution work, Ms. Mikulina’s practice covers a variety of related intellectual property (IP) work regarding transactions, including spin-offs, tax-based restructurings, mergers and acquisitions, and providing strategic advice on global IP portfolios.

For Ms. Mikulina, one of the most important IP issues today relates to the underlying policy that drives trademark law and the need to protect consumers by using trademarks to verify the quality and source of goods and services. She has also observed a significant increase in the pace of work since entering the trademark field. “Technology brings us closer together by providing instant communications across borders,” said Ms. Mikulina. “It can of course be a blessing and curse, but generally it serves to strengthen relationships between clients, outside counsel, and our network of trademark professionals around the world.”

When she’s not practicing trademark law, Ms. Mikulina volunteers with the Girl Scouts. “I’ve been the leader of my daughters’ troop since the girls were in kindergarten, and they are in seventh grade now. I’m the Vice President of the Board of Directors for our council-Girl Scouts of Greater Chicago and NW Indiana,” said Ms. Mikulina. She also serves as an officer of Chicago-based Lawyers for the Creative Arts, which provides free legal services to individuals and organizations working in the arts.

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