Elek Miller

Associate, Drummond Woodsum & MacMahon

Maine Law Class of 2010

IP Clinic Extern, Fall 2009

Elek received a B.A. in Sociology from Colby College and a M.A. in Public Policy and Sociology from New York University. While at Maine Law, he served as the Editor–in–Chief of the Ocean and Coastal Law Journal. He also was an extern for the Appeals Division of the U.S. Attorney's Office and a Legal Writing and Research Instructor. Elek is an associate at Drummond Woodsum in Portland. He has had a chance to work on a number of intellectual property issues, including trademark and copyright infringement litigation where they have represented alleged infringers as well as IP owners seeking to enforce their rights. He also had the opportunity to advise clients more generally on a range of IP matters, including preliminary trademark and patentability questions. Drummond Woodsum is also in the process of expanding their IP practice, and he has been fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to take part in that process as well.

How the IP Clinic helped Elek's career:
"It provided a chance to interact with clients at an early stage, which I think is a skill that becomes increasingly important as we progress through our legal careers. It also provided practical experience and skills in registering trademarks and providing trademark, patent, and copyright opinions. Even learning something as seemingly minor as the proper way to search the PTO's trademark database has been very helpful because it allowed me to hit the ground running with respect to certain trademark questions that otherwise would have taken significantly more time to puzzle out. Ultimately, taking part in the clinic and many of the IP courses offered at Maine Law has allowed me to step into a number of IP matters and assume much more responsibility well before I would otherwise have been able to."