Rachael Dickson is a trademark attorney with expertise in acquiring federal trademark registrations for cannabis and hemp companies at the USPTO. She regularly advises other trademark attorneys on their applications and searching trademarks using USPTO's TESS (Trademark Electronic Searching System) tool. 

From 2017-2021, Rachael was a trademark examining attorney at the US Patent and Trademark Office, where she specialized in examining cannabis trademarks as part of a select controlled substance work group. In this role, she was awarded a 2020 USPTO Customer Service Award and managed to win a TTAB case for the USPTO in abstentia (In Re Harbor Hemp Company LLC, 2022). Rachael has spoken on cannabis trademark issues on several occasions, most notably as a solo speaker at MJBizCon 2022 ("The NewlyWeed Game: Who Wants a Cannabis Trademark?") and at the Suffolk Law Intellectual Property Conference in 2022 ("High Hopes: Cannabis Trademarks at the USPTO"). 

Rachael is also a visiting assistant professor at Suffolk University Law School, where she runs the Intellectual Property and Entrepreneurship Clinic. She is currently working on an article on the lawful use requirement in trademark law which compares the USPTO's current treatment of applications to register cannabis trademarks with the US Patent Office's treatment of applications to register alcohol trademarks during Prohibition (1920-1934). 

Rachael formerly served as contract counsel with PharmaCann in Illinois, where she wrote state license applications for expansion to other states, trained dispensary, cultivation, and security employees on applicable regulations, worked with state agency officials, and performed a million other cannabis business start up tasks (including trimming buds for a few days alongside the founders!). (2015-2016)

Rachael is also a history aficionado who has spoken at TudorCon on three separate occasions (mostly about historical intellectual property). She can be found talking about trademarks, history, and cats primarily on Twitter, but also on Instagram, TikTok, and as of 07/2023, BlueSky and Threads, all under the screen name TudorsandTMs.

Rachael holds a degree in history and minors in electronic journalism and music from George Mason University (2010, cum laude) and a JD and certificate in Cyberlaw from DePaul University Law School (2015, cum laude). She is licensed in Illinois, Washington, DC, and (very soon!) Massachusetts.

Julie Shursky partners with businesses across a range of industries to help them select, secure, and protect their brands. Julie’s work includes assisting clients throughout the full life cycle of trademark protection, including clearance and prosecution of marks. Her work includes developing international protection strategies for clients with global reach, and she excels at aligning portfolio development with her clients’ goals.

Julie also has extensive experience assisting clients through adversarial proceedings, including handling ex parte matters with the Trademark Trial and Appeals Board and appeals with the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals. She also regularly handles opposition and cancellation proceedings before the TTAB, as well as litigation disputes in state court. Julie’s counsel also frequently includes assisting clients with contract negotiations regarding the acquisition or disposition of marks.

Before joining Sheridan Ross, Julie worked as a trademark attorney with a private practice in Virginia. While in law school, she worked as a student attorney and law clerk with private practices and gained experience as a legal intern with the Federal Communications Commission. Julie also served as a judicial intern for Judge Kathleen O’Malley, who serves on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Julie earned her bachelor’s degree from George Washington University and her law degree from American University, Washington College of Law.

Robert M. Tobiassen is the President of the National Association of Beverage Importers, Inc. (NABI), Washington, DC, since October 2018. Prior to that appointment, he was the Principal at Tobiassen Consulting Plus Solutions LLC, after a 34-year Federal service career with regulatory, taxation and administrative and judicial enforcement experience with the domestic and global alcohol industry and served in the career Senior Executive Service (SES) as the inaugural Chief Counsel, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), Department of the Treasury in 2003. As TTB Chief Counsel, Mr. Tobiassen liaisoned with CBP, USTR, and the Departments of Commerce and Agriculture, as well as Capitol Hill. He served on USTR delegations to negotiations with the European Commission in Brussels and the WTO in Geneva.

Mr. Tobiassen holds a B.A. in Political Science with distinction from the University of California, Berkeley, a J.D. from the Lewis and Clark College, Portland, Oregon where he served on law review, and a LL.M. in Taxation from the Georgetown University Law Center, Washington, DC. Among other awards, Mr. Tobiassen received the 2003 Presidential Rank Award for Meritorious SES Executives and the 2012 Distinguished Service Award from the Secretary of the Treasury.

Corporate attorney advising a broad range of clients including multi-state cannabis operators, professional sports franchises, software companies, and multinational businesses on corporate transactions and agreements.

Specialties: cannabis, mergers, acquisitions and divestitures, private placements, and general corporate agreements.

Notable Work:
- Cannabis: Representation of multi-state cannabis operators in transactional matters throughout the country, including the acquisition of cannabis licensees in Florida, Pennsylvania, Nevada, California, and Michigan.
- Professional Sports: Assisted clients in the sale of professional sports franchises across multiple sports.
- Media Publishing: Represented client in a multi-bidder sale process concluding in the sale of an iconic multimedia publishing company.
- International Joint Venture: Assisted in the representation of a multinational corporation in connection with international joint venture transaction expanding client’s business in nine (9) countries in Central America and Caribbean.
- Sponsorship and Advertising: Represents professional sports franchises and sports and entertainment facilities in sponsorship and advertising agreements, including multiple naming rights agreements.

Jonathan Robbins serves as chair of Akerman’s Cannabis Practice, counseling clients on the evolving, complex legal and business issues impacting companies with interests in the regulated substances industries. Ranked by Chambers USA as a top lawyer in Cannabis Law and recognized in 2018 by the National Law Journal as one of the country’s “Cannabis Law Trailblazers,” he has been published and quoted in national media outlets such as U.S. News & World Report, The American Lawyer, Politico, Washington Post, Bloomberg News, and Law360. He is a founding board member of the National Cannabis Bar Association and is also an active member of the National Cannabis Industry Association.

Jonathan brings deep experience representing public and private companies and individuals in complex regulatory and litigation matters in the regulated substances sectors. His experience encompasses investigations and administrative and enforcement proceedings brought by federal, state, and self-regulatory bodies, including the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Florida Attorney General’s Office, Florida Department of Financial Services, and Florida Office of Insurance Regulation.

In addition to his growing cannabis practice, Jonathan also represents public and private companies and individuals in complex regulatory and litigation matters in the financial services and regulated substances sectors. His experience encompasses investigations and administrative and enforcement proceedings brought by federal, state, and self-regulatory bodies, including the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Florida Attorney General’s Office, Florida Department of Financial Services, and Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. He is a go-to resource for broker-dealers and registered persons in securities-related cases filed in both federal and state courts, as well as in FINRA arbitration proceedings addressing both customer and sector disputes.

Jonathan has represented numerous broker-dealers and clearing firms ranging in size from smaller, regional broker-dealer and investment advisory firms to major national wirehouses. He serves as an arbitrator in securities arbitrations between both customers and members and associated persons and members. He frequently represents clients adverse to the SEC while working with the enforcement agency as counsel for receivers appointed by U.S. District Courts.

A regulatory and transactional lawyer by background, Zack Kobrin is a nationally recognized leader in cannabis law. Having previously served as the Vice President and General Counsel for one of the largest cannabis companies in the U.S. and as the General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer for a publicly traded, multi-state cannabis company, Zack’s practice focuses on cannabis, marijuana, and hemp law. In his prior capacity, Zack was responsible for all corporate and regulatory legal matters, including transactional, banking, and insurance matters; as well as ensuring compliance with federal, state, and local government regulations. Zack was also a key member of the team that helped take his former company public on the Canadian Securities Exchange.

Zack’s practice involves advising clients on the evolving, complex legal and business issues impacting companies with interests in this heavily regulated industry, including all manner of corporate, real estate, and regulatory legal issues. He speaks frequently at business, legal, and industry events and advises a number of entities on areas such as business development and formation, as well as legal and regulatory and compliance issues in the emerging growth cannabis, marijuana, and hemp industries throughout the United States and international markets. Zack also advises clients on developing federal and state public policy matters and banking and insurance issues impacting clients in the cannabis, marijuana, and hemp industries.

In addition to his work in the cannabis industry, Zack’s practice focuses on antitrust, where he advises clients on the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) review and filing process required to obtain federal antitrust approval for certain mergers and acquisitions. Zack works with clients on HSR reportability and transaction structure issues to ensure compliance with federal antitrust regulatory requirements.

https://www.carltonfields.com/team/g/merrick-l-gross