Buchanan Snags International Trademark Shareholder Bruce McDonald and Adds Associate Jennifer D'Angelo to its IP Practice

Alexandria, VA, February 22, 2010 — Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC is pleased to welcome Bruce A. McDonald to the firm as a shareholder and Jennifer D'Angelo as an associate in the Intellectual Property Section of the firm's Alexandria office. McDonald has 30 years of experience in federal, administrative and appellate court litigation with a principal focus in trademark law. Prior to joining Buchanan, McDonald was a partner in the Intellectual Property and International Practice Groups of Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis LLP.

McDonald focuses on all aspects of trademark practice, including selection, clearance, registration, and litigation.  In 2009, he was lead counsel for the successful plaintiff in a landmark trademark infringement ruling in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. In 2008, he was lead counsel for the American Bar Association in the successful defense of a service mark infringement action in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

McDonald's wide range of litigation experience includes four years in the Office of the Solicitor at the U.S. Department of Labor, where he argued numerous times in the U.S. appellate courts. He also previously focused in federal and administrative litigation involving energy, natural resources, and government contracts.

McDonald is fluent in Russian and attended Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) State University as an American exchange student on a national language scholarship.  He has been engaged by Russian companies in the United States and Western companies in Russia. He has advised agencies of the Russian Government for advice on intellectual property issues.  In 2005, he was lead counsel for a Russian bank in a successful court action against the Office of Foreign Assets Control, which forced the U.S. Treasury Department to issue an export license releasing a block on U.S. assets frozen under the Sudan Sanction Regulations.  In 2008, he participated in the representation of an Italian candy manufacturer in a trade dress infringement case before the Supreme Arbitrazh Court of the Russian Federation.  In 2009, he accompanied the President of the ABA and two other individuals in official meetings with Russian government and professional counterparts in Moscow.

McDonald's professional associations include the International Trademark Association, where he is the leader of a working group in the Internet Committee and principal author of a report on electronic service of process currently posted at www.inta.org. He is also an active member of the U.S.-Russia Business Council. In recognition of distinguished achievement, McDonald was elected to membership in the Cosmos Club of Washington, D.C., in April 2009.  He is a 1979 graduate of the American University School of Law and holds  Bachelor Degrees in Economics and Russian Studies from the University of California at Santa Cruz.

D'Angelo counsels and represents clients in trademark and copyright enforcement and litigation, including domain name disputes and protecting intellectual property in cyberspace. Additionally, she assists clients in trademark clearance, prosecution, registration and enforcement in the U.S., including pursuing and defending against oppositions and cancellations.