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Nick Kuhlmann

Nick Kuhlmann

Senior Counsel
Overview

Nick combines a technical background with extensive litigation experience to serve as a tenacious advocate in patent and trademark matters.

Nick represents clients of all sizes, from small businesses to multinational corporations, in patent and trademark litigation, anti-counterfeiting, and trade secret matters. He has served as trial counsel on multiple cases through verdict or bench trial.

While he has handled cases in a variety of industries, he is particularly experienced with clients whose businesses focus on the food and food systems spheres, including indoor farming and sustainable agriculture. In addition to his litigation work, Nick also advises clients on trademark portfolio management, trademark prosecution, and domain name enforcement, overseeing a global trademark portfolio for a Fortune 500 fertilizer company.

After beginning his career as an organic chemist for a multinational corporation, Nick earned his law degree and began practicing in IP law in 2004. His chief focus has always been IP litigation; however, he also has experience with patent prosecution and has drafted and prosecuted utility patents in the chemical, mechanical, and medical device fields. Nick has also represented clients in a variety of complex commercial litigation matters, such as insurance coverage, class action antitrust, and massive multidistrict litigation—experience that helps him spot potential legal problems beyond the IP arena.

Crafting compelling legal strategies from complex facts lies at the heart of Nick’s practice. He enjoys analyzing and building a case, he’s known for a flexibility that makes him an agile litigator, and he’s at his happiest when he’s getting results for clients. His broad background gives him a strong advantage here: Nick’s experience in patent prosecution means that he understands the finer details of patents and their histories, helping him develop pointed, persuasive arguments for a case.

Industry

Services

Education

  • J.D., Marquette University Law School
    • Marquette IP Law Review, Editor
  • B.A., University of St. Thomas
    • magna cum laude

Admissions

  • Minnesota
  • Wisconsin
  • U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota
  • U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Wisconsin
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit
  • U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

Professional Memberships and Certifications

  • Minnesota Intellectual Property Law Association; Board Member, 2019-present; President-Elect, July 2023–June 2024
  • Minnesota Chapter of the Federal Bar Association

Languages

  • Spanish, conversational
Outside the Office

Nick enjoys spending time with his teenagers, partner, and recently-adopted Labrador/German Shepherd puppy, who loves attention, as well as exercising outdoors.

Community Leadership

Nick has served on the Board of the Minnesota Intellectual Property Law Association, the state’s primary professional organization focused on IP law, since 2019. He greatly values the broad view his role gives him of Minnesota’s IP legal community.

For many years, Nick also has mentored law students at the University of St. Thomas.