Leon R. Legleiter, Ph.D.
As a partner with KDW, Dr. Leon Legleiter counsels clients in all aspects of intellectual property law, all while keeping an eye on finding real-world solutions to protect IP assets, advance technology development, and support critical business needs. Dr. Legleiter offers clients nearly two decades of diverse intellectual property law—a tenure that includes patent and trademark preparation, prosecution, strategic counseling and opinion work. His extensive experience in IP law covers wide-ranging technologies across chemical, life science and mechanical industries.
He has practiced before the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office and has coordinated and managed the protection of complex patent portfolios in foreign jurisdictions around the world. His global experience with patent opinion work includes freedom-to-operate, infringement, validity and due diligence studies and client counseling in the strategic development of patent portfolios.
Role/Title
- Partner
Education
- North Carolina Central University Law School, JD, 2011
- North Carolina State University, Ph.D., Biochemistry, 2007
- University of Missouri, M.S., Animal Science 2003
- University of Missouri, B.S., Animal Science, 2001
Admissions
- Bar: North Carolina
- Other: Registered to practice before the US Patent and Trademark Office
Practice Areas
- Patents
- Trademarks
Industries
- Life Sciences
- Biotechnology
- Chemical
- Medical Devices
- Mechanical Arts
Notable Legal Expertise
- Patent application drafting and prosecution, including world-wide prosecution
- Global patent portfolio development, management and optimization
- IP opinions, including patentability, infringement analysis, freedom-to-operate
- Trademark registration and prosecution
Representative Technological Expertise
- Antibodies, vaccines, and diagnostics
- Drug screening methods and cell culture systems
- Therapeutics, including gene therapy and cell therapy
- Industrial and polymer chemistry
- Agricultural biotechnology, fertilizers and equipment
- Food science and food processing
- Imaging technologies
- Chromatography
- Medical devices
- Analytical devices and methodologies
- Nanotechnology
- LED applications
Experience
- Jenkins, Wilson, Taylor & Hunt, P.A., Partner/Managing Partner 2017–2023
- Jenkins, Wilson, Taylor & Hunt, P.A., Patent Agent/Associate Patent Attorney, 2007–2017
Presentations & Guest Lectures
- Technology Development Workshop, Office of Technology Commercialization, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, “IP Basics”, 2013
- Technology and Entrepreneurship guest lecture, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, “Patent Strategies”, 2014
- Poole College of Business guest lecture, North Carolina State University, “Fundamentals of US Patent Law”, 2015, 2016 and 2017
- Biomedical Engineering guest lecture, North Carolina State University, “Patents 101 and Parts of a Patent”, 2017
- University of Missouri Technology Advancement Office, “Updates on the Law of Patent Eligible Subject Matter”, 2019
- Texas A&M University Office of Innovation, “Current Application of 35 USC 101- Impacts on Diagnostic Inventions”, 2020
Suite 103
Cary, NC 27513
