Mary Shapiro, JD, MBA

Of Counsel

Crown, LLP

After 20 years in the book publishing industry and ten years at the renowned intellectual property law firm Townsend and Townsend and Crew, LLP, I started my own law firm in the heart of San Francisco’s Financial District in 2009. From there, I joined forces with another boutique powerhouse IP Law firm, Crown, LLP. With Crown, I counsel a broad range of clients in owning, enforcing, protecting, and profiting from their intellectual property.

Law is my second career, and I am passionate about protecting brands and creative properties. I have extensive experience in trademark selection, clearance, prosecution, and enforcement, including handling trademark applications before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), and representation in proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB), and Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy panels.

As the legal cannabis industry began emerging, I was able to start at the ground floor and strategize about how to obtain federal trademark registrations for cannabis goods and services. I've positioned my work at Crown as a go-to legal resource to cannabis clients as the industry grew, helping them navigate complex legal issues, such as securing trademark protections for related goods and services. I am also very active in the battle for federal legalization, or simply a change at the United States Patent and Trademark Office, so that owners of cannabis businesses can be on the same footing as other business owners regarding their capabilities to protect their brands.

I advocate for cannabis legalization and often do pro bono work for Americans for Safe Access, International Cannabis Bar Association, Marijuana Policy Project, Origins Council, and Sweetleaf Collective. I am on the board of directors for Americans for Safe Access, an organization dedicated to bringing access to cannabis therapeutics to patients. I am also on the advisory Board for the International Cannabis Bar Association, an organization focused on raising the standard of legal services available to the cannabis industry and advocate for the lawyers’ right to represent cannabis industry participants.

Specialties: State, U.S. and International Trademarks (Clearance, Prosecution, Enforcement and dispute resolution, Brand and technology Licensing), Cannabis consumer protection (Trademarks, Packaging and Labeling, Recall Plans), Trade Secret Plans, Copyright, Domain Name Disputes, Internet Policies, New Top Level Domains