People | Thomas M. Sullivan

Tom is highly experienced in all aspects of Intellectual Property Law, particularly in strategies for successfully building, maintaining and enforcing corporate patent portfolios. He is practiced in a wide range of technology fields, including analog and digital electronics, power electronics, computer software and hardware, electromagnetics, electronics assembly and manufacturing, and computer vision systems.

Tom focuses in the areas of intellectual property counseling, enforcement and the patent acquisition process, and his practice is built around a strong technical foundation gained through more than 10 years of experience as an electrical engineer, primarily in the areas of power electronics and electromagnetic compatibility. Before entering the law, Tom had a successful career as a Senior Electrical Design Engineer at Raytheon Company, where he was involved in the development and upgrade of communications systems and missile defense systems for the U.S. Department of Defense. He also has experience in developing and modifying software code for use in automated test systems. In addition, Tom has an M.B.A. degree, further strengthening his business background.

In his practice, Tom particularly enjoys using the combination of his business and technology backgrounds to work closely with clients to develop intellectual property strategies that are consistent with their business goals. Some representative matters include:                                                                                   

• Developed and continues to expand and maintain an IP Portfolio for a major international electronics manufacturer.
• Represented a university professor and his start-up business in licensing patents and technology to a large, multinational medical devices company.
• Has successfully represented a tool manufacturer for almost 10 years in enforcement of patent and trademark rights against competitors in the U.S. and abroad.  
• Represented a healthcare software provider in two separate reexamination matters before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that both successfully resulted in stays of litigation and review of the opponents’ patents by the USPTO. 
• Prosecuted a number of patents that have been successfully enforced and licensed.

• Suffolk University Law School, J.D., cum laude.
• New Hampshire College, M.B.A.
• University of Lowell, B.S. Electrical Engineering, magna cum laude.

• Admitted to practice law in Massachusetts and in various federal courts
• Registered to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
• Member, Boston Patent Law AssociationMember, American Bar Association
• Member, American Intellectual Property Law Association
• Member, Suffolk Law School Patent Alumni Steering Committee
• Named Massachusetts “Super Lawyer” in the field of Intellectual Property
• Member, Friends of Merrimack College