About

As Kathryn Park runs one of the world’s most substantial trademark portfolios, she has experience and knowledge that, fortunately, many others benefit from. As a past president of INTA, the global association that promotes the protection of brands, she is frequently invited to speak at international conferences. Park says: ‘I realize that collective effort is often required to affect change’, and has proven to be as good as her word: at present, she is vice-chair of the Trademark Public Advisory Committee, meaning she works closely with the Commissioner of Trademarks and the Chief Judge of the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board to ensure that the US Patent and Trademark Office provides a good service to users. She has also worked with the Intellectual Property Owners’ Association and the Association of National Advertisers. Park understands the importance of tackling change head on – when she joined GE, her primary responsibility was trademark prosecution, but these days the team’s legal knowledge is utilized to assist with GE’s branding, marketing and promotional activities too. She says: ‘At GE, you can really grow your career without many limitations. Seizing opportunity, and being open to change, is valued here. Where I saw a need that fell within my expertise, I took on the work without being asked’. Park says the greatest challenge her profession currently faces is the risks associated with the expansion of the internet, including the multitude of new gTLDs. She says ‘We work with really great outside counsel. We value pragmatism, founded on expertise, and of course are always looking for work to get done as efficiently as possible. We also look for diversity in our representation, and find we get the best work done by firms that have diverse talent working on our matters’. Mark Engelmann, of Fross Zelnick Lehrman & Zissu, says Park is ‘quite simply, one of the leading trademark lawyers of her generation’, but Park insists her ‘amazing team’ are a factor in her success and says that ‘nothing is achieved alone!’