BENJAMIN I. EDLAVITCH
PATENT ATTORNEY
USPTO Reg. No. 57,142
Ben Edlavitch is a USPTO-registered patent attorney and strategic intellectual property advisor who combines over 21 years of IP law experience with a diverse technical background spanning software, electrical and computer engineering, and the life sciences. Before entering the legal profession, Ben gained hands-on experience in medical and food science research and worked as a computer programmer, leading the development of a variety of complex information systems. This unique combination gives Ben more than 30 years of experience across information technology, research and development, and intellectual property.
Drawing on this multidisciplinary background, Ben works with inventors, entrepreneurs, startups, and established companies to protect, develop, and strategically leverage their innovations and intellectual property. Beyond his legal practice, he is an avid long-distance runner and an active volunteer attorney, speaker, startup mentor, and board member.
Since 2005, Ben has prepared and prosecuted thousands of patent applications. The vast majority of these applications have granted as patents. Ben also assists clients in domestic and international patent and trademark prosecution, and he regularly supports clients in litigation and intellectual propserty disputes. He also advises on trade secret policies and provides guidance on trademark and copyright registrations.
In addition to patent and intellectual property law counseling, his practice includes advising on complex commercial agreements and technology licenses, including advising on ownership and open-source software issues and other business challenges found in computing, e-commerce, and tech startup ventures.
Ben is admitted to practice law in Minnesota and Illinois and before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. He brings Big Law experience from his time as an intellectual property attorney at Greenberg Traurig and Brinks Gilson & Lione, and he also served as the sole in-house counsel for an enterprise software company.
Over the past 6 years, as a solo practicioner, Ben has personally prepared more than one hundred U.S. patent applications spanning innovations in artificial intelligence, machine learning, quatum technology, bioinformatics, agtech, e-commerce, neural networks, deep learning, fintech, telecommunications, computer hardware and software, computer vision, blockchain, cybersecurity, medical devices, MEMS, biosensors, semiconductors, power electronics, robotics, IoT, telemedicine, and farming and education technology.
Education
Chicago-Kent College of Law
(J.D., Dean's List)
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Editor of the Chicago-Kent Journal of Intellectual Property
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Editor of the Chicago-Kent Journal of International and Comparative Law
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CALI Award for academic excellence in Trade and Intellectual Property Rights
Purdue University
(Graduate School Coursework in Electrical and Computer Engineering)
University of Illinois at Chicago
(B.S. Electrical Engineering, cum laude)
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Eta Kappa Nu (HKN) - Electrical Engineering Honors Society
University of California, Berkeley
(Certificate in Computer Information Systems, with Distinction)
Washington University in St. Louis
(B.S. Biology, Dean's List)
Bar and Court Admissions
United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)
Minnesota
Illinois
Example Volunteer Activities
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Volunteer Attorney at LegalCORPS
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President and board member of the Minnesota Inventors Hall of Fame
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Startup Mentor at Minnesota Cup
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Startup Mentor at Cleantech Open
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Startup Mentor at Berkeley SkyDeck
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Lead discussions and seminars on intellectual property law and patent strategy as well as train engineers, scientists, physicians, and software developers on brainstorming techniques and invention harvesting
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Led presentations at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and the Minnesota chapters of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), the International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE), and the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE International)
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Provided assitance in a housing dispute through Volunteer Lawyers Network (VLN)
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Provided pro bono immigration law services via the Legal Assistance Foundation (LAF)
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Tutored inner city high school students at Chicago’s Legal Prep Charter Academy
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Tutored math and science through the African American Academic Network at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC)
Example Publications and Presentations
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Twin Cities IEEE Computer Society: Software Patents (Presentations, April 2018, February 2024, March 2025)
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SAE: Patent Law for Engineers (Presentation, Jan. 2020)
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INCOSE: Patent Law for Engineers (Presentation, Sept. 2018)
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Open Source Software Licensing at the Office of Technology Management - University of Illinois (Presentation, Mar. 15, 2011)
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Coauthor of "A MEMS-based Vacuum Gauge for Measuring Pressure and Out-gassing Rates in Miniaturized Vacuum Microelectronic Devices" (International Vacuum Nanoelectronics Conference, 2010)
