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We have over two decades of experience helping innovators navigate the IP and legal landscape.
Your future customers and patients deserve your innovation. We’ll guide you in getting it to them faster by helping you navigate the legal, IP, business and strategic landscape. Business model development and strategy, entity formation and structuring, intellectual property procurement, supplier and customer contracts, mergers & acquisitions, regulatory strategy, and general legal and business counsel.
Intellectual property is the cornerstone of technical ventures. It could make or break your ability to raise funds, your competitive advantage, and the very viability of your venture. Rush or skimp on protecting this critical asset at your peril. We’ll help you protect your intellectual property in a strategic and cost-effective manner–around the globe, and in whatever form it exists, whether patent, trademark, copyright, trade secret or know-how.
Forming a new entity is easy. With 10 minutes and a credit card, you could incorporate or form an LLC in virtually any state. And that would get you 5% of the way. Selecting an appropriate entity for the near-term life of your venture; internally structuring it for you, your co-founders and your investors; and balancing timing, complexity and budget–that’s a bit more involved. We’ll guide you through the process.
Any attorney could provide you a template or find issues with an existing contract. And any attorney could run up the clock with meaningless haggling. We’ll help you bypass the nonsense and focus on provisions that really matter to your specific situation. And we’ll help you negotiate a win-win result in a manner that both streamlines the process and builds the partnerships you will need for your venture to succeed.
Licensing negotiations are complex. There are critical nuances associated with patent, trademark and copyright law; important milestones and phases; and equally important human aspects to the negotiation process and the corresponding business relationship . We’ll guide you through all of this in a way that protects your position and helps you forge the solid relationships that you’ll need long after the ink dries on the license document itself.
Anyone can start a business. Many do. 90% fail. We’ll help you develop a business model and strategic go-to-market plans that give your innovation the best shot at making it among the 10% of businesses that succeed and thrive, long after the starting line.
Our President and Chief Strategist, Matthew Smyth, founded Headland Law & Strategy to combine his personal passion for medical and technology-based innovation with his nearly two decades of professional experience in law, intellectual property, business, engineering, strategy and project management.
Matthew has a wealth of legal and technical experience, gained through nearly a decade inside the legal team at Fortune-75 Honeywell International Inc.; several years within the IP powerhouse of Fish & Richardson; and several years as a hands-on design engineer at Artesyn Communication Products.
Bar Admissions: Minnesota
Julie McLeod is a skilled IP Professional with 20+ years experience in patent prosecution and trademarks. She has advanced knowledge of US, PCT, and international patent prosecutions and will support Headland Law & Strategy working across multiple clients. Julie has worked at Conversant Management Corporation since August 2010 as a Senior Patent Administrator and brings experience working with US, Canadian, and international matters.
Amara is an Executive Support Consultant with several years of experience working with top leaders across the legal, technology, and life sciences industries. She has advanced knowledge of administrative and operational systems as well as leadership support and coaching. Amara will support Headland Law & Strategy to streamline systems for case management, document management, communications, and billing. She has worked supporting CEOs since 2016 including Juliette Kayyem of Grip Mobility LLC and the Harvard Kennedy School, Anthony Habayeb of Monitaur.ai, Joe von Rickenbach of stetvision LLC, and Mark Weinberg at Halloran Consulting Group.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY • CORPORATE • STRATEGY
Our Name.
Headlands have held strategic significance for centuries. They were often home to castles, lookouts and military outposts because of the strategic vantage points they afforded for assessing risks and providing high-level views of rugged terrains. We sought to create a boutique firm that offers a similar strategic vantage point for our entrepreneurial and innovative clients as they assess risks and navigate their own challenging terrains.
