Jim is a highly-experienced intellectual property attorney with a wealth of experience guiding innovative technology companies through rapidly evolving and high-stakes business landscapes. He has significant experience advising companies as they scale from early-stage / high-growth private companies through IPO while counseling on a broad range of matters including intellectual property strategies, competitive intelligence, risk mitigation, and other strategic and transformative matters.

His intellectual property practice includes developing and maintaining domestic and international patent and trademark portfolios, including analyzing competitor patent portfolios and litigation. He is experienced in strategic patent counseling and commercial disputes involving complex technical issues and has served as associate general counsel for intellectual property at a major cybersecurity company.

Jim has a strong track record in building portfolios of investment-grade patents that serve as valuable assets for companies. His work in this area focuses on creating patent portfolios that can be leveraged as collateral for financing. Additionally, he has developed patent strategies that enhance a company's appeal to investors, demonstrating innovation potential and positioning businesses for successful fundraising efforts.

Jim has particular expertise in artificial intelligence and machine learning, including transformer architectures and large language models. His work spans advanced deep learning applications such as multimodal AI systems, self-supervised learning, and quantum machine learning. He has particular experience in AI security. Jim also has experience in cryptography, zero-trust security architectures, and cloud-native security solutions. His work encompasses IP covering AI-powered threat detection, automated incident response, and sophisticated malware analysis using deep learning techniques, among others.

Jim is currently a degree candidate at the University of Texas at Austin for a Masters of Science in Artificial Intelligence. He has completed professional coursework at MIT and Stanford in computer security and cryptography. He also has technical certifications in information security from the Cloud Security Alliance and Cisco Systems and has passed the CISSP examination. Before founding CipherLaw, Jim was with the international law firms of Morrison & Foerster and Perkins Coie.

He holds a degree in computer engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology and an LL.M. in National Security Law from Georgetown University and is licensed to practice law in various federal courts, in Washington, D.C., California, Virginia, Maryland, and before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

The University of Texas at Austin (M.S. Artificial Intelligence [candidate])
Georgetown University Law Center, LL.M., National Security Law
Georgia Institute of Technology, B.S., Computer Engineering
Tufts University, B.A.

Melissa Silverman
melissa@cipher.law

Melissa Silverman, Esq., is a legal expert specializing in governmental policy and regulatory developments, with a strong emphasis on tracking and analyzing federal and state regulations in artificial intelligence. She closely monitors legislative updates and advises clients seeking to shape AI policy and compliance strategies. Her work ensures that enterprises stay ahead of evolving regulatory landscapes, mitigating risks and capitalizing on emerging opportunities in the AI sector.

Melissa also handles licensing arrangements and disputes involving intellectual property, including trademark, copyright, design patents, and contractual matters in both state and federal courts.

Her commercial litigation background spans both the public and private sectors. She spent over a decade advocating for the U.S. Government in administrative and civil cases, including those addressing government noncompliance and civil fraud in the banking and financial sectors. As Assistant General Counsel in the Office of Program Enforcement at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, she played a critical role in cases concerning mortgage lending and servicing practices, often collaborating with the U.S. Department of Justice.

Melissa has also represented corporate and individual clients in intellectual property and contract disputes in federal and state courts, as well as U.S. and international arbitration tribunals. Melissa is licensed to practice law in Georgia, Washington, D.C., and the federal courts.

Tulane Law School, J,D.

George Washington University, M.A.
Syracuse University, B.A.

Let’s Connect