Jeremy D. Protas Announces Recipient of 2013 Jeremy D. Protas LGBT Patent Law Scholarship
Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP attorney Jeremy D. Protas announced Jonathan D. Cocks as the recipient of the 2013 Jeremy D. Protas LGBT Patent Law Scholarship. Mr. Cocks, originally from Texas, is a third-year law student at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law and holds a Bachelor of Science from The University of California, Los Angeles, in aerospace/mechanical engineering. During his studies at UCLA, Mr. Cocks founded and participated in an effort to design, build, test, and launch a pulse-plasma thruster-powered cube satellite. Before attending law school, Mr. Cocks worked as a research and teaching assistant at UCLA and for The University of California Police Department. Following graduation from law school, Mr. Cocks will return to Texas to pursue a career in patent law.
Mr. Protas funds the $1,000 patent law scholarship, which is awarded annually and is geared toward lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender law students intending to pursue a legal career in the field of patent law. Candidates for the 2013 scholarship had to be enrolled at an American Bar Association-accredited law school for the 2013–2014 academic year and be eligible to sit for the Patent Bar Exam. Information can be found at http://jeremy.protas.org/scholarship/.
As an associate at Marshall Gerstein, Mr. Protas counsels clients on all types of patent-related matters, focusing on securing patents in diverse technologies including process control, wireless communication, business methods, medical devices, and bioinformatics. While focusing on patent preparation and prosecution, his practice also includes providing patentability and freedom-to-operate opinions, and general intellectual property counseling. Additionally, Mr. Protas serves on Marshall Gerstein’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee and the Firm’s Pro Bono committee. He also participates in the Firm’s marketing and community outreach efforts, particularly in the LGBT community.
Mr. Protas joined the Board of the Directors for the National LGBT Bar Association in 2010, and currently serves as chair of the association’s membership committee. Mr. Protas received recognition as one of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association’s (MCCA) 2013 Rising Stars, and in 2012 he was named one of the Best LGBT Lawyers Under 40 by the National LGBT Bar Association.