Design Law 2026 Agenda
Agenda
| Time | Topic | Speakers |
| 8:00 AM – 9:00 AM | Registration and Breakfast | |
| 9:00 AM – 9:15 AM | Welcome Remarks and Conference Introduction | Rob Katz, Shareholder, Banner Witcoff Tracy Durkin, Director, Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox |
| 9:15 AM – 10:00 AM | Design Patent Claim Interpretation: Factoring Out Function or Viewing the Whole Design? | Rob Katz, Shareholder, Banner Witcoff (Moderator) Chris Carani, Partner, McAndrews, Held & Malloy Brad Van Pelt, Shareholder, Banner Witcoff |
| 10:00 AM – 10:30 AM | Comparison Prior Art: Essential Context or Unnecessary Complexity? | Tracy Durkin, Director, Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox (Moderator) Michael Joffre, Ph.D., Director, Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox Vicki Webb, Shareholder, Banner Witcoff |
| 10:30 AM – 10:45 AM | Morning Break | |
| 10:45 AM – 11:15 AM | Useful Articles, Different Answers: Is Copyright Law Better in the U.S. or the EU/UK? | Rob Katz, Shareholder, Banner Witcoff (Moderator) Michael Conway, Partner, Birketts Ivy Estoesta, Director, Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox |
| 11:15 AM – 11:45 AM | The USPTO’s New GUI Guidelines: Too Far, Not Far Enough, or Just Right? | Tracy Durkin, Director, Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox (Moderator) Alisa Abbott, Shareholder, Banner Witcoff Rebekah Holtz, Associate, Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox |
| 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM | Lunch | |
| 1:00 PM – 1:30 PM | Keynote | Dylan Brockhaus, Senior Industrial Designer, Garmin |
| 1:30 PM – 2:15 PM | Human Enough? Where Should the USPTO Draw the Line on AI-Assisted Designs? | Tracy Durkin, Director, Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox (Moderator) Dylan Brockhaus, Senior Industrial Designer, Garmin Josh Davenport, Shareholder, Banner Witcoff Dan Gajewski, Director, Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox |
| 2:15 PM – 2:45 PM | Should The Design Patent Infringement Test Be Similarity or Dissimilarity? | Rob Katz, Shareholder, Banner Witcoff (Moderator) Sean Jungels, Shareholder, Banner Witcoff George Raynal, Managing Partner, DesignLaw Group |
| 2:45 PM – 3:15 PM | Alternative Designs for Trade Dress Non-Functionality: Relevant Evidence or Red Herring? | Rob Katz, Shareholder, Banner Witcoff (Moderator) Monica Riva Talley, Director, Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox Evi Christou, Shareholder, Banner Witcoff |
| 3:15 PM – 3:30 PM | Afternoon Break | |
| 3:30 PM – 4:15 PM | Claim Construction or Claim Constriction? How Far Should Words Narrow a Design Patent? | Tracy Durkin, Director, Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox (Moderator) Elizabeth Ferrill, Partner, Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner Mark Janis, Professor, Indiana University Maurer School of Law Richard Stockton, Shareholder, Banner Witcoff |
| 4:15 PM – 4:45 PM | Town Hall Topics | Rob Katz, Shareholder, Banner Witcoff Tracy Durkin, Director, Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox |
| 4:45 PM – 5:00 PM | Closing Remarks | Rob Katz, Shareholder, Banner Witcoff Tracy Durkin, Director, Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox |
| 5:00 PM – 6:00 PM | Reception |