Tim's Travails

Podcast Special — If you are tracking the news, you'll be fascinated by this interview with IP attorney and author Timothy Trainer's podcast/video show and fellow author Joe Relk.

Today's Topic: How fiction imitates reality — now, more than ever!

Some of the questions that Tim asks Joe include:

Let's talk about what's happening today in the fall of 2025 here in the US, including the abandonment of the rule of law. It's a big theme in your book. How it fiction imitating reality? What was your forecast when you started writing your book in 1991? In "Sins of our Saviors," there is a line that says, "Only I can fix it." That is happening today with the US president. Tell us about your thoughts as an author and military expert. Let's also talk about your thoughts on legalizing corruption. And so much more! Don't miss it! About our guest: Joe Relk is an analyst, manager, and strategic communicator with more than 30 years developing and implementing influential reporting plans, interagency strategies, and public relations initiatives. He joined the State Department as Foreign Service Officer in 2002. Joe has served in Venezuela, Bolivia, Germany, Ecuador, Guatemala, Suriname, and Afghanistan. read more...

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October 2025 — This month on IP attorney and author Timothy Trainer's podcast/video show we meet GW Intellectual Property Law Professor Mark Traphagen

Our topic: Artificial Intelligence and its impact on labor, with a focus on how AI impacts the creative/entertainment industries, including several recent developments:

Anthropic's decision to pay out $1.5 billion for downloading thousands of books in violation of copyright law The required human element to claim copyright to authored works About our guest: Mark Traphagen is the U.S. contributing author to the legal treatise Copyright Throughout the World, and has taught international and comparative intellectual property law at the George Washington University Law School and the Munich Intellectual Property Law Center, a consortium that includes the Max Planck Institute for Innovation and Competition. After starting his legal career with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and Finnegan Henderson LLP, Mr. Traphagen represented what is now the Software and Information Industry Association in negotiations for the WIPO Copyright Treaty and Congressional enactment of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. He also advised clients about the implementation and enforcement of the WTO TRIPS Agreement and prepared submissions for the annual “Special 301” review by the U.S. Trademark Representative. Today, Mr. Traphagen is the principal of Traphagen Law PLLC, where he practices in the fields of copyright and trademark, entertainment and sports law, advertising and promotions, and privacy and data security. Click here to get LinkedIn with Mark. read more...

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September 2025 — This month on IP attorney and author Timothy Trainer's podcast/video show we meet Chun T. Wright, law firm owner and former Assistant U.S. Attorney in the District of Columbia

This month's topic: The adventure of travel law

Tim asks Chunnie:

You’ve built a legal practice that covers copyright, trademark, technology and even something called “adventure travel law.” How did you create such a unique mix and what is the common thread You have traveled to over 60 countries, how did that happen? Out of all those adventures, what are one or two trips that really stand out as unusual, challenging or unforgettable? Did your travel and outdoor activities lead you into Adventure Travel? What is Adventure Travel law? For entrepreneurs and companies listening—whether they’re building cutting-edge tech or leading people up mountains—what’s one piece of legal advice you wish everyone knew? About our guest: Chun (Chunnie) Wright is the owner of the Law Office of Chun T. Wright, a Washington, DC-based boutique law firm. The firm’s practice areas include intellectual property protection and enforcement (trademark and copyright), technology law, and adventure travel law. read more...

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August 2025 — This month on Mark Cohen, former intellectual property attaché at the US Embassy in Beijing

Today's Topic: Understanding China through a Professor's Eyes

Tim talks with Mark about:

What advice would you offer someone studying Chinese today? What are the challenges facing US diplomats in China on Intellectual Property? What do you see as the trajectory for US-China relations in trade and especially in Intellectual Property? About our guest: Mark Cohen is a non-resident fellow at the National Bureau of Asian Research and the University of California, San Diego. He serves as a guest professor at Renmin University (Beijing) and on the Advisory Board of the Asia Society. He previously led the Asia IP Project at the Berkeley Center for Law and Technology at Berkeley Law School, where he was responsible for teaching international trade law and researching and writing on IP issues. Previously, Cohen was Senior Counsel, China in the Office of Policy and International Affairs at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, after serving as a visiting professor at Fordham Law School (2011-2012). Prior to that time, he served in such functions as: Director, International Intellectual Property at Microsoft Corporation; Of Counsel to Jones Day’s Beijing office; and Senior Intellectual Property Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing (2004-2008). In total, he has over 30 years of private, public sector, in-house, and academic experience in China and transition economies, with a focus on technology trade and intellectual property. read more...

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July 2025 — This month on IP attorney and author Timothy Trainer's podcast/video show we meet patent attorney Thomas Moga

Today's Topic: The China Factor and what might happen next

Tim will talk with Tom about: With his latest book being The China Factor, Tim has deep insights into the inner workings of international trade. Today, he'll dive deep into the current state of affairs in 2025 and will share with the audience insights from Tom, who has more than 30 years’ experience in domestic and international IP portfolio development and enforcement. read more...

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June 2025 — This month on IP attorney and author Timothy Trainer's podcast/video show we meet Stacey Kalamaras, the founding partner of Kalamaras Law Office LLC, an intellectual property boutique in Chicago, IL.

Today's Topic: The Importance of Embracing Change

On today's episode, Tim asks Stacey:

Tell us about the importance of ensuring small businesses protect their brand/logo/trademarks. Why is it so essential, and should this practice be part of a small business strategy? What is your opinion of what's going on today with global trade and tariffs? How will it impact small businesses? What is your forecast for the future of small businesses and protections? About Stacey: Having started her career in Washington, DC, close to the United States Patent and Trademark Office, and more recently here in Chicago, Stacey worked for one of the world’s largest law firms, managing global trademark portfolios. She has spent over 30 years working for some of the world’s most beloved brands in more than 150 countries and for clients in diverse industries. In January 2018, with the founding of her eponymous firm, she now assists small and medium-sized businesses identify, register, protect and commercialize their brands both in the U.S. and abroad. Before going to law school, she was a brand manager and advertising director in the consumer-packaged goods industry, which gives her valuable insight into her clients’ businesses on a practical level. read more...

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May 2025: Hello friends! I’m Hope Katz Gibbs, founder of Inkandescent, and I'm so happy today to introduce you to our new client and podcaster — IP attorney and author Tim Trainer. We met at Elaine’s Literary Salon just after his 3rd novel, The China Factor, was published this year. In the months since, our Inkandescent team has had the privilege of launching his new website, TimothyTrainer.com and posting entries to his blog that talks from experience about international trade, especially with China, as well as the current state of global economics and politics. read more...

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Jan. 15, 2025: Today at Elaine's Literary Salon — Writing books is a passion for attorney Timothy Trainer who for more than three decades focused on intellectual property issues in his day job. He has worked in government agencies and in the private sector and his assignments have taken him to 60 countries around the world.

"He found time to pen a few non-fiction tomes, including his first book, Customs Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights; the 15th edition was published in 2022," shares Jeffery James Higgins, host of the Elaine's Literary Salon show, in his introduction of Tim at today's event. "Thomson Reuters’ Aspatore Books published Tim’s next title in 2015, Potato Chips to Computer Chips: The War on Fake Stuff. But fiction was a genre Tim always wanted to try." read more...

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