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Education
Awards & Honors
In a survey of his peers published in Super Lawyers magazine, Mr. Yee was named as one of Southern California's "Rising Stars" in intellectual property law (2014).
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Professional Profile
Thomas Y. Yee, a partner in our Orange County office, focuses on optimizing the commercial value of the intellectual property of our clients. Leveraging his diverse business experiences, Mr. Yee counsels clients on strategic actions for patent portfolio development, intellectual property transactions and licensing, and trademark portfolio procurement.
The clients that Mr. Yee serves vary from sole inventors and medium-size companies to large multi-national corporations, all in a diverse set of industries, including medical devices, financial services, internet startups, automotive, electronics, software, medical informatics, biotech, warehousing logistics and components, religious institutions, sporting goods, and baby products. Mr. Yee advises business leaders across the U.S. and around the world, such as in Honolulu and Hong Kong, as well as other parts of China and Europe.
Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Yee was one of the youngest managers in the Internet division of the American Express Company, where he was responsible for a re-engineering initiative of the worldwide website for the company. Mr. Yee also conducted due diligence for the founders of a New York City based venture capital firm, Silicon Alley Seed Investors, specifically evaluating $1-2 million investments in early stage startups.
Additionally, Mr. Yee served as a business development manager at a Silicon Alley financial services software company, TradingNews. At Walker Digital, the Internet incubator that created Priceline.com, Mr. Yee worked on the creation of two startup companies, where he was responsible for managing business development work with the company’s development partner, Bain Consulting in Boston, and for overseeing the technical development work with the company’s software development teams in New York and Atlanta.
Additional Information
Representative Pro Bono Activity
- Guardianship Matter: Assisted a maternal aunt in a guardianship matter involving two teenage nieces
- Marital Dissolution Matter: Investigated a marital dissolution matter as relating to potential fraudulent accounting by an abusive ex-spouse
- Corporate Law Matter: Handled corporate law entity matter relating to removal of a corporate suspension status
- Trademark Matter: Developed trademark protection strategy for non-profit organization focused on congenital heart disease in infant children
- Scholarship: Helped found the OCDTF Scholarship Program for University of California-Irvine Law School students
Specializing In
Cases, Articles, Speeches & Seminars
Speeches & Seminars
Yee T., Wahl B. "Protecting Trademarks and Patents in China: What You Need to Know," 16th Annual U.S.-China Trade Conference, Chicago, IL (November 5, 2015).
Wahl B., Yee T. "IP Value Creation - Role and Practice of the Entrepreneurial General Counsel," University of California, Irvine - Law School, Irvine, CA (February 10, 2015).
Wahl B., Yee T. "Intellectual Property Rights in China After a Half Century of Industrialization," Fifteenth Annual U.S.-China Trade Conference, Chicago, IL (November 18, 2014).
Sganga, J., Yee T. “Best Practices and Trends in U.S. Patent Litigation and Prosecution,” US Litigation and Patent Prosecution Seminar, Osaka, Japan (July 11, 2014).
Yee T., Sganga, J., “Best Practices and Trends in U.S. Patent Prosecution,” US Patent Prosecution Seminar, Tokyo, Japan (July 8, 2014).
Sganga, J., Yee T. “Trends in U.S. Patent Litigation: Pro-Accused Infringer,” US Litigation Seminar, Tokyo, Japan (July 7, 2014).
Adams R., Yu J., Wahl B., Yee T. “Starts and Exits: The Life Cycles of Life Science Startups,” Private Equity Conference - Financing Innovation and Technology in Healthcare Conference, Chicago, IL (March 14, 2014).
Townes N., Wahl B., Yee T. “Intellectual Property Essentials and Value Creation,” Orange County Bar Association – Business and Corporate Law Section, Irvine, CA (February 26, 2014)
Chaput B, Ippolito F, Wahl B, Yee T. “Protecting and Leveraging your Clients’ IP Rights and New Patent Law Implications,” State Bar of California 85th Annual Meeting, Monterey, CA (October 13, 2012).
Pai F., Singeo L., Wahl B., Yee T. “Addressing Your Clients’ Intellectual Property Needs in Business Transactions,” State Bar of California 84th Annual Meeting, Long Beach, CA (September 18, 2011).
Singeo L., Tse G., Wahl B., Yee T. “Addressing Your Clients’ Intellectual Property Needs,” State Bar of California Cyber Institute, Irvine, CA (webinar) (January 27, 2011).
Pai F., Singeo L., Wahl B., Yee T. “Addressing Your Clients’ Intellectual Property Needs,” State Bar of California 83rd Annual Meeting, Monterey, CA (September 25, 2010).