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Julianne Hartzell and Tiffany Gehrke Named Litigation Trailblazers

December 5, 2016

Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP is pleased to announce that partner Julianne Hartzell, and associate Tiffany Gehrke, have been named to the third annual list of Litigation Trailblazers and Pioneers published by the National Law Journal. The Trailblazers and Pioneers list identifies litigation professionals who go above and beyond the norm, and bring about meaningful change through their work.

The Marshall Gerstein team has been recognized for its novel argument and successful defense of a trademark infringement and counterfeiting injunction in the context of bankruptcy. After the team had obtained a multi-million dollar judgment and an injunction against defendants for counterfeiting children’s religious products, two defendants sought discharge of the injunction and financial judgment in bankruptcy court. Finding no published decisions, the team successfully argued that the injunction could not be discharged. Analogizing intellectual property injunctions to environmental protection injunctions that prevent further pollution, the team argued that IP injunctions should be excluded from discharge in bankruptcy because they do not constitute debts. The California bankruptcy court agreed, and entered summary judgment in favor of the firm’s client, ruling that the injunction entered in the district court would be unaffected by the opposing parties’ bankruptcy filings and any resulting discharge.

“We are thrilled for the well-deserved recognition of this team,” said Marshall Gerstein’s Managing Partner, Jeffrey Sharp. “Together, they truly moved the needle with application of a creative approach to a bankruptcy law issue,” he added.

This forging of new law is the most recent example of Marshall Gerstein’s leading approach to intellectual property enforcement. For more than 60 years, the Firm has achieved highly regarded results in complex intellectual property litigation.

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