Blank Rome partner Matthew A. Homyk will serve as a panelist at the Intellectual Property Owners Association’s (“IPO”) 2026 Annual Meeting, being held September 27 through 29, 2026, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Matt’s session, “Protecting the Integrity of the Federal Trademark Register: The USPTO’s Evolving Tools, Rules, and Enforcement Strategies,” will take place on Tuesday, September 29, from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

About the Session

This session will review recent United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) enforcement developments and rule changes. It will provide practical insight into compliance and risk management. Topics include USPTO fraud crackdown and register cleanup; expanded audit program using pixel-analysis software to flag digitally altered specimens; full retirement of the Trademark Electronic Application System (“TEAS”) and launch of Trademark Center with new fee structure; Madrid Protocol modernization proposals; and Trademark Modernization Act expungement/reexamination proceedings being used at scale.

Panelists: 

  • Deirdre Clarke, Novartis
  • Matt Homyk, Blank Rome LLP
  • Sara Suleiman, HP Inc.
  • Dan Vavonese, U.S. Patent & Trademark Office

For more information, please visit the event webpage.