Since 1987, Bill Brewster has been providing client counseling and litigating in the fields of trademark, false advertising, and unfair competition, as well as copyright, trade secrets, and restrictive covenants. He has litigated in courtrooms across the country, including jury and bench trials, argued numerous appeals, and handled dozens of preliminary injunction and summary judgment motions. Mr. Brewster has participated in arbitrations in trademark and advertising cases, as well as proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.
Mr. Brewster is widely recognized as one of the top IP lawyers in the country. In 2008, he was lead trial counsel in adidas v. Payless, obtaining the largest jury verdict and the largest judgment ever entered in a trademark case.
Mr. Brewster was listed in The Best Lawyers in America® for Intellectual Property Law in 2012 and every year prior since 1997, and has also been listed for Advertising Law. In 2002, IP Worldwide featured him among “The Magnificent Seven: IP’s Best Young Trial Lawyers.” He is listed in the 2009, 2010 and 2011 editions of Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business for Intellectual Property Law. He is among the “astounding seven lawyers from Kilpatrick” selected and featured in the trademark section of the 2007 Who’sWhoLegal, one of five IP lawyers from the firm listed in the 2007 PLC WhichLawyer? Yearbook, and one of six listed in The International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers. Mr. Brewster is also routinely included as one of the “Legal Elite” by Georgia Trend Magazine. He was named a Georgia "Super Lawyer” in the areas of Intellectual Property and Intellectual Property Litigation in 2009 and 2011 and for Intellectual Property in 2010 by SuperLawyers magazine. He was named by Legal Media to its 2008 Guide to the World's Leading Trade Mark Law Practitioners and was named to Lawdragon's prestigious 2008 Leading Lawyers in America guide. Mr. Brewster has also been recognized in the 2009 and 2011 Legal 500 US in the area of Trademark Law and as a Leading Lawyer in Trademark Litigation in 2011. In 2009, he was ranked among the Top 20 Trademark Attorneys by Trademark Insider. In 2010, he received the inaugural Intellectual Property Community Service Award from the Atlanta Business Chronicle. In 2011, Mr. Brewster was recognized by Benchmark: Litigation as a "Litigation Star” for Georgia and a “National Litigation Star” for Intellectual Property. He is AV® rated by Martindale-Hubbell.*
From 2001 through 2006, Mr. Brewster served as the firm’s Managing Partner, having responsibility for the day-to-day business of the firm, as well as strategic planning and client service. He assumed that role after two years as Chair of the IP Department, and was the youngest managing partner of any AmLaw 200 firm. During his tenure, the firm opened its New York office and expanded strategic practice areas. Based on a combination of firm financial performance, pro bono work and attorney satisfaction, the firm was the only one with a Southeastern headquarters to appear in the Top 50 of the 2006 AmLaw “A List.” Mr. Brewster currently serves on the firm’s Strategy and Pro Bono Committees. His service as Managing Partner reflects the high regard of his partners but, more importantly, provided him with unique mid-career, first-hand experience with the day-to-day challenges of managing a large, international enterprise. This experience has given Mr. Brewster rare insight into counseling similarly complex business clients.
*CV, BV, and AV are registered certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedure's standards and policies.
Professional & Community Activities
American Bar Association, Intellectual Property, Litigation, and Sports & Entertainment Sections, Member
American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA), Member
Emory University School of Law, Adjunct Professor of Trademark Law (2001 - present)
International Collegiate Licensing Association (ICLA), Member
International Trademark Association (INTA), Member and Past Chair of National Moot Court Competition
State Bar of Georgia, Intellectual Property, Litigation, and Sports & Entertainment Sections, Member
University of Virginia School of Law, Associate Member of the Dean’s Council, Former Adjunct Professor