James, Ken

Bill Smith has more than 20 years of experience handling commercial and intellectual property litigation, with a primary focus on advertising, trademark, copyright, and unfair competition matters.

Over the course of his career, Bill has twice represented the successors-in-interest to author Margaret Mitchell in copyright litigation that established and adjudicated the scope of sequel rights in the novel Gone With the Wind. Bill's copyright practice also embraces commercial disputes over the design of consumer products as well as infringement claims involving computer software and related compliance audits.

In the trademark area, Bill has served as principal litigation counsel for a national bedding manufacturer with responsibility for trademark litigation worldwide. He is experienced in all phases of trademark litigation, including preliminary injunction proceedings in federal court and inter partes proceedings before the USPTO. Bill's advertising practice includes the litigation of disputes involving television, print, internet, and other advertising in the courts as well as in self-regulatory proceedings before the National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus (NAD).

Bill has appeared in cases before the United States Supreme Court; the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the First, Third, and Eleventh Circuits; and in state and federal trial courts in more than 20 states. He is a member of the Cornell University Alumni Association (reunion chair, class council representative) and the Atlanta Ad Club and judges the Southeast Regional Moot Court Competition of the International Trademark Association (INTA).