Intellectual Property Forum

An important element of technology development is the identification and protection of intellectual property. Very few behavior analysts understand or appreciate the role of intellectual property in the development of any technology, including behavioral. Instruments such as patents, trademarks, and copyrights serve to establish ownership of a device or process which may become the basis of a commercial enterprise that disseminates the technology to the larger society.

We at Behavior Technology Today are pleased to welcome Harold W. (Hal) Milton, Jr. to our board of consulting editors. Hal is an intellectual property attorney with Howard & Howard Attorneys, P.C. in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. He was admitted to the Michigan bar and the Virginia bar in 1964 and is registered to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. He has engaged in all phases of patent, trademark, and copyright practice, including prosecution of patent applications and licensing. Hal's practice has been devoted to serving as lead trial counsel in successfully litigating various patented technologies, assisting new enterprises in protecting their technology so as to entice investment or facilitate its sale, and overseeing the creation of patent, trade secret and trademark portfolios during periods of significant growth for several large corporations. He is experienced in the field of behavior analysis, having helped a number of investigators secure patents on behavioral technologies.

We invite readers to submit questions on this important topic. Just click on Forum and your question, together with Mr. Milton's answer, will appear in the forum in the very near future. If you do not wish to be identified, you may sign your question with initials. Please indicate if you wish to receive an individual reply. Sorry, all replies will be electronic only.