Courtney Thornton

About

I’m an IP attorney with over a decade of BigLaw experience now running my own practice so clients receive senior-level strategy with the accessibility & partnership they desire. I help businesses protect, strengthen, & scale their brands, working across trademarks, copyright, advertising, & internet law. Over the past decade, I’ve procured thousands of trademarks worldwide across dozens of industries; overcome the toughest USPTO refusals with creative, business-aligned strategies; represented clients in federal court and TTAB proceedings; & managed & grown global IP portfolios for companies at every stage. I’ve been recognized as a Law360 “IP Ace” & included in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch since 2021, & I bring practical, business-first counsel shaped by my early career in marketing & tech. I’m a Stanford alum with Silicon Valley roots, & I think like someone who has owned brand growth responsibilities, not just analyzed them from a legal vantage point. I partner with clients across the full brand lifecycle: Brand strategy & clearance • Trademark prosecution (U.S. + international) • IP portfolio management • Contracts & licensing • Enforcement programs • TTAB matters • Advertising & domain disputes • DMCA takedowns • Online infringement & social media issues • Misappropriation of likeness My clients range from startups & universities / research institutions to global corporations across a variety of sectors. I operate as an extension of my clients’ teams — responsive, strategic, & mindful of business goals, budgets, and timelines. My clients get the experience I developed in Big Law, but delivered with direct access, predictable pricing, faster turnaround, & practical recommendations. Before becoming an attorney, I spent more than a decade in advertising, sales, & marketing with Fortune 500 tech & pharma companies, as well as SEO & mobile search startups. That background continues to inform how I counsel clients: with commercial sense & an eye toward growth.

Practice Areas

Featured Clients

VectorStudio WayLeadpagesCherry Street EnergyATLAS Ministry IncEdible Arrangements®QuartzRoti Mediterranean GrillBrave Like Gabe FoundationT2TennisUltimate TennisMission:Brain

Services

• Trademark Portfolio Management

  • Ongoing monitoring and strategic oversight of global trademark portfolio • Docketing accuracy review and deadline management • Identifying registration gaps and proposing strategic filings
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• Trademark Clearance Searches

  Evaluates whether a proposed brand name or logo is available for use and registration by identifying existing similar marks that could create legal or business risk before launch.
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• Trademark Prosecution

  • Responding to Office Actions - analyzing and responding to refusals to overcome legal or technical barriers to registration • Monitoring deadlines and managing specimens, extensions, and Statements of Use
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Work

• 
  Of Counsel

  Ballard Spahr LLP

  Dec 2023 - May 2025
• 
  Senior Associate

  Troutman Pepper Locke LLP

  Dec 2017 - Nov 2023
• 
  Associate

  Smith Gambrell Russell

  Sep 2014 - Dec 2017

Education

• Stanford University
  BA • 2000
• Emory University School of Law
  JD • 2014