Online legal services part of changing landscape
Online legal services are not going away, so traditional attorneys need to adapt to the changing marketplace, according to panelists at a San Diego Law Library event last month.
Education
Law School/Year: University of San Diego School of Law, cum laude, Order of the Coif, 2000
Other Graduate School: University of Washington, Ph.D., organometallic chemistry
College: University of California, San Diego, B.A., chemistry/biochemistry
Bar Admissions
California; USPTO; U.S. District Court, Southern District; the U.S. Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit; U.S. Supreme Court
Practice Areas
Intellectual Property
Major Cases
Tahmassebi has conducted numerous IP due diligence projects in relation to mergers and acquisitions, venture capital investments, and initial public offerings (IPO). He has also frequently represented clients in preparation and/or negotiation of licensing contracts, confidential disclosure agreements (CDA), material transfer agreements (MTA), collaboration agreements, consultation agreements, and IP-related documents associated with SEC filings. He currently represents clients in a wide range of technologies, including chemicals, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, and medical devices.
Professional Background
Sam K. Tahmassebi, Ph.D., a founding partner of TechLaw LLP, is a patent attorney registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and admitted to practice law in California. He specializes in obtaining patent protection for chemical, pharmaceutical, biotech, and medical device inventions. He is also an adjunct professor of law at the University of San Diego School of Law.
Tahmassebi has substantial experience in the preparation and prosecution of both U.S. and foreign patent applications, counseling on patent strategy, patent infringement issues, and intellectual property due diligence, as well as in authoring opinion letters regarding patent invalidity and non-infringement.
Tahmassebi received his Bachelor of Arts degree in chemistry/biochemistry from the University of California, San Diego, Revelle College. He then went on to obtain his Ph.D. in organometallic chemistry from the University of Washington. Tahmassebi then worked as a research associate at the University of Rochester, where he designed organometallic catalysts for the production of organosulfur compounds. Subsequently, he was an adjunct professor of chemistry at University of San Diego.
Tahmassebi received his J.D. from the University of San Diego School of Law in May of 2000, graduating cum laude. He received CALI Awards in Criminal Law, UCC Sales and Commercial Paper, Patents and Tradesecrets, Biotechnology Law, and Intellectual Property law. Upon graduation, he was admitted to the Order of the Coif.
While in law school, Tahmassebi worked as a patent agent and a law clerk at Lyon & Lyon, LLP, a leading intellectual property firm, where he also worked as an associate following graduation from law school. Following the dissolution of Lyon & Lyon, Tahmassebi served as an associate in the San Diego office of Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear, LLP. He also was Of Counsel to Vista IP Law Group LLP.
Professional Affiliations
He is also a long-standing member of the American Chemical Society, American Bar Association, American Intellectual Property Law Association, San Diego Intellectual Property Law Association, and Licensing Executives Society. Tahmassebi speaks Farsi fluently and is conversational in Spanish. He served as the chair of the San Diego chapter of the Licensing Executives Society (2007-2008) and is currently the CFO of the Iranian American Life Science Network.
Online legal services are not going away, so traditional attorneys need to adapt to the changing marketplace, according to panelists at a San Diego Law Library event last month.
When California Western School of Law students approach visiting professor Bob Seibel, they always have the same query: What's the best way to run a law practice?
The U.S. Supreme Court typically makes it biggest splash at the end of a session, and this year was no different.
With the dawn of flexible hours and technological advances, it’s a new age to be a female lawyer, according to a panel of female attorneys recently hosted by The Daily Transcript and sponsored by Union Bank.
SAN FRANCISCO — The Silicon Valley venture capital firm of Kleiner, Perkins, Caulfied & Byers has been generating buzz for decades, spotting early investment opportunities and making billions with companies like Google and Amazon. This summer, the attention is no different, but the reason for it is.
Ensuring their plans are executed according to their wishes — and protecting them from unexpected pitfalls — is an important consideration for wealthy individuals. As such, a great deal of attention and press is paid to the importance of having a will or well-written trust document to ensure that your legacy is carried out. While this is a critical step, of equal importance is choosing the successor trustee — the person or entity that will carry out those wishes on your behalf.
Well-respected for their contributions to understanding of the law and to legal education, California Western School of Law associate deans William Aceves and Laura Padilla lend their considerable expertise and acumen to the day-to-day operations of San Diego’s oldest law school.
On many occasions and from many sources, including potential clients and patent attorneys, the phrase "stake in the ground" has been used to describe the purpose or goal of a provisional application. If one considers a provisional application to be a stake in the ground, to somehow capture an area of technology around a stake, all one will get is the stake. This is not a viable patenting strategy. The flaws of such strategy, previously significant for non-U.S. rights, now are magnified by virtue of the first to file provisions of the American Invents Act (AIA). The first-to-file provisions of the AIA will come into effect on March 16, 2013.
The talents and expertise of the Thomas Jefferson School of Law faculty who collectively help drive the growing national and international reputation of the law school are exemplified by some of their recent noteworthy achievements.
The University of San Diego School of Law congratulates its notable alumni who appear on this list of top San Diego attorneys.
Jurors make decisions not just on what they see and hear, but also on what they believe. Jurors tend to believe what they can understand. That’s where the expert’s communications skills come into play.
As a year-round long-distance ocean swimmer, Steve Coopersmith is used to thriving in extreme, difficult conditions.
Last year was especially tough for plaintiffs and consumers in the world of pharmaceutical litigation.
Troutman Sanders is an internationally recognized firm with more than 600 lawyers and offices located throughout the United States and China. The San Diego practice covers a broad range of services including complex commercial litigation, intellectual property litigation, insurance litigation, and real estate and business transactions, led by Managing Partner Michael J. Whitton, named a Transcript 10 Top Attorneys finalist.
Good, honest and loyal employees are the greatest asset of any company. Unfortunately not all employees are great. Some employees are dishonest and others are vindictive. Not surprisingly, ex-employees who are discharged due to dishonesty are the most likely ones to post a defamatory blog about their former employer.
The attorneys of The Gomez Law Firm gladly step into the ring for their clients when defendants don’t pay what’s fair. This boutique firm focuses on high-value and high-profile catastrophic personal injury, wrongful death, products liability, trucking litigation and elder abuse. The willingness of the attorneys to go to trial combined with their attention to detail, impeccable service and results-driven approach have allowed the firm to obtain more than $250 million in verdicts and settlements since 2000.
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |