Pro Bono Resources

David Aylen, managing partner of Gowling WLG-Russia/CIS practice, has always had an eye on intellectual property (IP) law. Even as a civil engineering student at Carleton University in Ontario, Canada, he was preparing for the law program at the University of Ottawa. He would soon use his technical interests and expertise to hone his practice as an IP lawyer in Canada, Russia, and internationally.

He also became an active participant within INTA: he went to his first Annual Meeting in 1984 and has attended every Annual Meeting since 1991. He has served on various committees and is currently chair of the Leadership Communications Subcommittee of the Leadership Development Committee.

For 12 years now, the Canadian has been practicing in Moscow, Russia, advising international clients on doing business in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (the CIS includes many of the former Soviet republics), and assisting emerging Russian companies in establishing and protecting their rights globally.

During this time, Mr. Aylen has combined several of his main passions and has found an important, unique niche for supporting the Moscow cultural community. He and the Moscow Gowling WLG team have been providing vital pro bono support to the prestigious Multimedia Art Museum, Moscow (MAMM), protecting the rights of artists and exhibitions while satisfying his own keen interests in pro bono work, IP law, and photography. In 2020, the firm became the pro bono legal benefactor of the museum.

“Pro bono is always very important to think about though IP was once traditionally a practice that didn’t have obvious connections to pro bono work. It was strongly associated with business and commerce—areas not normally in need of pro bono assistance,” Mr. Aylen explained. “It really was only about a decade ago that intellectual property hit the wider mainstream. Not-for-profits didn’t historically think about intellectual property, but now they do. Charity, philanthropic, environmental, public health, and cultural foundations need to protect their brand names just as any business does. We’re helping on all fronts.”

Further, he pointed out that the international economy has become IP-based, and the need to protect intellectual capital has come to the forefront as a result.

“The value of innovation and creativity drives markets,” he said. “And at the same time, when we talk of the intangible value of innovation and creativity, we should also look to those who exemplify these aspects and push them forward in the cultural sphere, in the arts—and to the cultural institutions that support them. These artists and institutions need their own innovation, creativity, and IP rights protected.”

As a photographic art aficionado, Mr. Aylen was naturally drawn to MAMM. The Museum opened in 2010 in what had previously been the Moscow House of Photography, and is entirely dedicated to photography and video art. Its innovative and imaginative exhibitions showcase Russian and international contemporary artists, and MAMM is continuously running important educational and outreach programs.

Mr. Aylen credits Olga Sviblova, MAMM’s founder and director, for the museum’s sustained strength as a cultural institution. He noted: “She inspires everyone around her. It’s fantastic. It inspires us too. For our part, Gowling WLG in Moscow is in a position where we can support MAMM and its artists by supporting their intellectual rights. And we are very happy to help.”

According to Mr. Aylen, the pro bono work being done in the Moscow office is very much in line with Gowling WLG’s pro bono efforts and philosophy internationally. For example, it was the first international law firm to sign the UN’s Women’s Empowerment Principles, and it strongly supports anti-racism initiatives globally.

Madina Assylbekova, Director of Business Development, RUSSIA/CIS (Russia)

A self-proclaimed “logician with a law degree,” Joel Feldman (Greenberg Traurig, Atlanta, Georgia, USA) has been with the law firm. for more than 14 years. He serves as Vice Chair of the firm’s Global Trademark and Brand Management Group, and mentors many of the firm’s rising trademark law superstars.

Mr. Feldman continues to be active in professional trade organizations like INT  and is currently serving his first term on the Pro Bono Subcommittee of the newly established Brands for A Better Society Committee.

It’s only fitting that he sits on this Subcommittee. Paying it forward through pro bono legal work and community service are extremely important to him.

Mr. Feldman is a University of Florida alumni—a die-hard fan of the university’s Florida Gators football team. A fellow University of Florida alumni, 2010 Olympic Gold Medal bobsledder Steve Mesler reached out to Mr. Feldman shortly after the Olympic games to discuss branding for a new nonprofit endeavor to provide Olympic and Paralympic athlete mentors and content to underprivileged classrooms. Mr. Feldman jumped at the opportunity and has dedicated hundreds of hours to serving as the U.S. pro bono counsel for the project, called “Classroom Champions.”

Of  the volunteerism, Mr. Mesler remarked, “When I founded the organization in 2010, Joel jumped at the opportunity to help out, which at the time was surprising given that he was a 30-year-old attorney at one of the world’s biggest law firms trying to grow his practice, start a family, and build a business. But what I’ve come to know and admire about Joel is how incredibly giving he is of his time, network, and expertise.”

The Olympian noted that Mr. Feldman. found the time to make sure he was on every call, prioritized pro bono work with the organization’s trademarks, and helped grow different areas of the nonprofit.

“His want to give and help others is truly impressive, and something you don’t come across on a daily basis,” Mr. Mesler said.

In addition to his pro bono legal work, Mr. Feldman is also active in giving back to the community in other ways. He is on the American-Jewish Committee Atlanta Board of Councilors, a supporter of his synagogue, Ahavath Achim, and a facilitator for Leadership Buckhead and LEAD Atlanta.

Mr. Feldman has also been recognized for his professional success by the Fulton County Daily Report, the Atlanta Business Chronicle, Super Lawyers, The Best Lawyers in America, and Lexology’s Client Choice. In fact, he is one of only 12 intellectual property attorneys in Georgia ever to receive the Client Choice award since its inception over a decade ago. In 2020 World Trademark Review recognized him as one of three “gold tier” trademark attorneys in Georgia.

When he has time off from his busy schedule, Mr. Feldman loves to spend time with his wife and two sons, including serving as the assistant coach of their Little League. His other hobbies include watching the Atlanta Braves baseball games, playing tennis, participating in escape rooms and karaoke, doing puzzles, reading fiction, collecting sports cards, and attending concerts.

When asked what he is most proud of about himself or his life, he cited the mentorship of his sons and younger colleagues at work, noting: “My mentors really shaped my personal and professional experiences, and I think it’s important to continue the cycle.”

Written by Susan (Weller Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C., Washington D.C., USA)

When Micheline Don is not practicing what she describes as “a mix of soft IP,” she is chairperson of Reprieve Netherland, the Dutch branch of Reprieve USA, which she founded with other Dutch-based former volunteers to provide U.S. firms working on death penalty cases with temporary volunteer Dutch interns. Motivated by her own life-changing experience taking a sabbatical and working six months as a paralegal at a capital defence firm in Texas, Ms. Don is now keen to raise awareness among Dutch people as to the human rights issues associated with capital punishment while providing U.S. firms that are fighting for clients on death row with much-needed legal assistance.

While a very different experience than her IP practice, Ms. Don credits her time in Texas as changing her outlook both in her work and in life. Always keen to pursue social justice issues in her youth and envisioning herself as a defender of people’s rights, the experience provided her with a renewed resolve to seek opportunities to effect positive change. It is this same commitment to act against injustices―small or great―that motivated Ms. Don to join INTA’s Pro Bono Committee (now under the umbrella of the Brands for A Better Society Committee). To her, pro bono IP work has an important role: “Many people/small companies are focused on getting their businesses up and running. They put in a lot of effort and (serious) personal investment, but oftentimes are not aware of the role of IP―that it can strengthen their position, but also that it can pose a threat to their business if they infringe someone else’s IP. It is therefore important to create awareness and offer assistance to those who need it but may not be aware that they do, or may not (yet) have the means to seek legal counsel.”

Ms. Don has been a regular INTA Annual Meeting attendee throughout her 20 year career, taking her six month sabbatical at the six year mark. She currently advises, litigates, and does transactional work in IP, and IP-related aspects of IT and commercial contracts and is a partner at Parker Advocaten.