In This Issue Return to LES Home LES Spring Meeting: Hot IP Topics Featured In Atlanta President's Message: The Licensed Patent Challenge CLP Design Team Seeks Your Input New Alliances Lead To Breakthrough Webinars Sector Spotlight Chemicals, Energy and Materials Sector: CEMC Activities At LES Winter Meeting High Technology Sector: New Digital Content Committee Kicks Off At Winter Meeting Biomedical Devices Committee Inaugural Meeting In San Francisco Healthcare Sector: Reality Check: What Has Pharma Really Been Paying For Alliances? Mass Collaboration In Licensing: Is Wikinomics For You? LES Winter Meeting: Supreme Court Ruling Creates "Buzz" At Winter Meeting LES Local Chapter Minnesota: A Member Friendly Chapter Julius Vida Honored With Mentor Award Microsoft VP Issues A Call To Arms For New Voices In The IP Reform Debate PTO is calling... LES Annual Meeting: Change And The New Deal LES Calendar of Events		Minnesota: A Member Friendly Chapter The LES Minnesota Chapter aims to please. They have hit the mark by holding meetings in a central venue, providing CLE credits, offering varied topics and rotating chapter leadership. Current Chapter Chair Sharon Grosh describes the membership as "very diversified with a good mix of corporate and university involvement." The chapter includes individuals from legal and business development/licensing, as well as most industries including agriculture, medical device, pharmaceutical, consumer and chemical. Monthly luncheon meetings (with the exception of two social events per year) are held at a beautiful central location at the East Bank McNamara Alumni Center on the University of Minnesota campus and attract approximately 45 participants each month. This venue is easy to reach from both Minneapolis and St. Paul. The Chapter is starting to include CLE credit and incorporating the guidelines required to obtain CLE credit. In December 2006, the Minnesota Chapter began what they hope will become an annual event: Minnesota Deals of Distinction. The program invited participants to submit a deal for this annual award. An independent group of judges determined the winning team, which was announced at dinner. Judges were Dr. Massoud Amin, University of Minnesota; Jerry Okerman, Rain Source Capital Team Leader; Mary Maurice, Best Buy, Inc.; Harlan Jacobs, Genesis Business Center; and Ann Viksnins, Viksnins, Harris & Padys LLP. A chapter leadership team meets several times a year to identify topics and roles for lining up speakers. The team bases their programming decisions on information gathered from local members, an exchange of ideas and experience drawn from events outside of LES. The goal is to mix legal, IP, licensing and company profiles into the programs. On occasion, workshops and panel discussions are held. The recent March program featured Frank S. Farrell, F.S. Farrell, LLC, and Christopher K. Larus, Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi LLP, discussing the ruling and implications of the recent Supreme Court decision in MedImmune v. Genentech. If you are interested in attending an upcoming Minnesota Chapter meeting, contact Sharon Grosh at skgrosh1@mmm.com. Frank Farrell(left) and Chris Larus, speakers at a recent Minnesota meeting.
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