US firm adds partner to Minnesota office

New addition joins from Fish & Richardson where he was a principal for five years.

Barnes & Thornburg has added  Chris Hoff as a partner in the firm's IP department in  Minneapolis in Minnesota.

He has experience in developing IP for a broad range of technologies and sectors, including medical devices. Hoff has also appeared before the  US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) defending and invalidating patents in numerous post-grant proceedings involving ex parte and inter partes re-examinations and review proceedings.

He joins Barnes from law firm  Fish & Richardson, where he was a principal.

His background also includes counselling clients on trademark, copyright, and trade secret matters, as well as providing technical assistance in patent litigation matters.

Hoff was the first volunteer patent attorney in the US to obtain a patent for a pro bono client under the USPTO’s patent pro bono programme. Before becoming an attorney, he worked as a software developer at  CodeWeavers.

At Barnes, Hoff will focus his practice on patents and patent litigation, including patent portfolio development and management, patent prosecution, and post-grant proceedings.

Connie Lahn, managing partner of the firm’s Minneapolis office, said: “Chris has deep roots within the Minneapolis business and entrepreneurial community that will be a valuable addition to our office. His experience working with clients of all sizes, from individual inventors and startups to national tech companies, will bring significant capabilities to our practice.”

Also commenting,  Julia Gard, chair of the firm’s IP department, said: “We welcomed a number of talented attorneys to our IP department in 2022, and we’re excited to keep up the momentum this year with Chris.

“His background in computer science and experience as a software developer gives him a unique, significant perspective that resonates with our clients as we continue to help them navigate the IP landscape.”

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