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Micheline K. Johnson
Counsel / AtlantaMicheline K. Johnson is Counsel in the Intellectual Property Practice at Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP.
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Full Bio
Micheline Johnson serves clients as an intellectual property strategist, aligning IP creation and protection with clients’ unique business objectives across diverse industries. Her particular expertise in law, chemistry, and finance provides a unique ability to identify and address varied potential issues, which enables her to protect and leverage intellectual capital effectively. Micheline’s experience spans global car sharing, international media networks, pharmaceuticals, consumer products, hospitality, medical devices, and web-based services, providing a broad range of clients with practical clarity and strategic risk mitigation in IP matters.
Micheline manages complex trademark and patent matters worldwide. She negotiates international co-existence agreements and licensing deals and enforces IP rights against online and onsite infringers. She represents clients in federal courts and before the USPTO’s Patent and Trademark Trial and Appeal Boards, handling trademarks, copyrights, unfair business practices, and patents related to chemicals, manufacturing, toys, medical devices, and computer-based business methods.
Before joining SGR, Micheline chaired a national law firm’s Trademark and Branding section after developing and leading its Intellectual Property Group. She then spent a number of years at a new-model law firm that prioritized efficiency, value, and responsiveness, and is pleased to bring these values and her experience to SGR’s international platform.
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Representative Experience
- Led litigation team securing “famous” status for AVIS trademark in Taiwan, enhancing legal protections.
- Developed and executed multi-pronged strategy to reclaim client’s trademark ownership in China from prior unauthorized registrants (“pirates”).
- Repeatedly applied reclamation strategy for additional pirated trademarks in China.
- Obtained, maintained, and managed global IP protection for market-leading brands.
- Enforced clients’ brands against online infringement.
- Prosecuted and litigated domestic and international patents across diverse technologies.
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Bar Admissions
Georgia
District of Columbia
Tennessee
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office -
Education
Undergraduate- Spring Hill College
Grad School- Vanderbilt University
Law School- Vanderbilt University Law School
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Languages
French -
Memberships
American Bar Association
American Chemical Society
Chattanooga Women’s Leadership Initiative, former Corporate Advisory Board member
Corporate Partnership for Lookout Mountain Elementary School, Past Chairman
Family Promise of Greater Chattanooga, Past President and Board Member
Federation Internationale des Conseils en Propriété Intellectuelle (FICPI), Trademark CET Committee
Georgia Bar Association – Patent, Trademark, and Copyright Sections
Intellectual Property Owners Association
International Refugee Assistance Project, Past Volunteer
International Trademark Association (INTA), Emerging Issues Committee
Pro Bono Attorney in Chattanooga and Atlanta Legal Aid Programs
Second Life Chattanooga, Former Board Member
St. Jude Home and School Association, Past Board Member
Tennessee Bar Association – Patent, Trademark, and Copyright Sections
The Junior League of Chattanooga, Past Board Member
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Recognitions
The Best Lawyers in America®, 2020–2026
The Best Lawyers in America®, Trademark Law, 2012–2026
The Best Lawyers in America®, Copyright Law, 2016–2026
The Best Lawyers in America®, Patent Law, 2017–2026
The Best Lawyers in America®, Entertainment Law – Motion Pictures and Television, 2017–2026
Tennessee Super Lawyers, 2019
Best Lawyers® Chattanooga Patent Law “Lawyer of the Year,” 2018
Top 100 Tennessee Attorneys, Mid-South Super Lawyers®, 2016–2018
Top 50 Female Attorneys, Mid-South Super Lawyers®, 2015–2018
Listed in Mid-South Super Lawyers® in Intellectual Property, 2013–2018
Best Lawyers® Chattanooga Trademark Law “Lawyer of the Year,” 2014
Martindale-Hubbell AV® Preeminent™ Peer-Review Rated -
SGR Publications
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Press