Tuesday, April 14, 2020:  12:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.

Many successful businesses develop important assets that are "intangible," including trademarks identifying your products (or services) in the flow of commerce, and patents to protect scientific inventions. Learn how to protect such assets and ensure your company's continued success.

Class covers:

• Protecting an original invention through the patent process
• What patent protection can provide your business, and what it can't
• How to develop and protect a valuable trademark

Presented by: Steve Smyrski and Jason Zedeck with the support of Bixel Exchange.

Registration fees: FREE - sponsored by the Friends of the Los Angeles County Law Library through the generous support of Pacific Western Bank.
Classes fill up fast, register today to reserve your seat! All registrants must check-in 10 minutes prior to class time to ensure your seat is not reassigned to waiting-list and walk-in attendees when classes are full.

Photography / Videography:
If you register for this class, you may be photographed or recorded. By registering for this class you are giving the LA Law Library your consent to photograph, videotape, record and broadcast your picture, likeness, voice and statements.  

No legal advice:
LA Law Library does not provide legal advice. LA Law Library provides legal resources and assistance with legal research as an educational service. The Law Library is pleased to offer our patrons the opportunity to obtain assistance from third party legal service providers at this and other events within the Library. However, the Library does not control and is not responsible for the content or scope of any assistance given by those providers.

Tuesday, April 21, 2020:  12:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.

As a business owner, you try to do things that set you apart from the competition. Usually, you do not want the competition to know your important business information, and you don't want them to profit from your creative expressions and original works. In this class, learn how to protect the information and work that gives your business an edge.

Class covers:

• Copyright: what is protected, and how to make sure no one profits from your original works and expressions
• Free for the taking: what you can take from others, what others can take from you
• Clearance required: what you do need permission to use
• Pitching, idea theft, and implied-in-fact-contracts
• Trade secrets: how to obtain, protect, and enforce
• Non-disclosure agreements and non-competition agreements
• Methods for protecting sensitive information

Presented by: Dan M. Forman and John L. Geiger with the support of Bixel Exchange:

Dan M. Forman is the managing partner at the Los Angeles office of employment law firm Carothers DiSante & Freudenberger LLP. His knowledge expands beyond traditional employment law to the expanding field of trade secret litigation where he has successfully prosecuted and defended complicated cases.

Forman's vast litigation experience, including bench and jury trials, also allows him to adeptly utilize alternative dispute resolution techniques to achieve efficient and expedited results in cases with high financial exposure. His experience extends throughout state and federal courts, as well as alternative dispute resolution venues. Forman represents clients before a wide range of regulatory agencies, including California's Labor Commissioner, the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, Employment Development Department, Equal Employment Opportunity and similar agencies.

In addition to achieving favorable results in litigation, Forman advises California clients on the full gamut of employment topics in an effort to avoid claims. Forman counsels service providers, high tech companies, insurance agencies, security businesses, manufacturers, financial institutions, health and medical industry clients. He drafts wage and hour policies, employment and severance agreements, covenants-not-to-compete and trade secret confidentiality agreements, and advises on collective bargaining and WARN Act compliance.

To help employers and business executives stay ahead of emerging legal issues, such as social media, employee retention and non-compete and confidentiality agreements, Forman frequently provides employers and clients updates by his participation in various industry webinars and presentations.

John L. Geiger is the General Manager of Standards & Practices for Los Angeles County's Internal Services Department, where he advises on complex information technology, telecommunications, and intellectual property procurements and projects. With over thirty years of legal experience, Mr. Geiger is a former Principal Deputy County Counsel, and is admitted to practice law before all Courts of the State of California, as well as the United States Court of Federal Claims and the United States Supreme Court. In 2001, he was Board certified as an appellate specialist by the California Board of Legal Specialization.

Prior to joining the public sector, Mr. Geiger was an entertainment attorney in Century City, representing entertainment celebrities, including feature film talent (producers, writers, and directors) and headline music artists. As a writer and screenwriter, Mr. Geiger is a member of the Authors Guild and the Writers Guild of America/West (Independent Film Caucus). He is co-author of the book Creativity & Copyright, to be published by the University of California Press in 2019.

Mr. Geiger is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley (Bachelor of Arts - English), the University of California, Los Angeles (Master of Fine Arts - Film), and the University of Southern California (Juris Doctor).

Registration fees: FREE - sponsored by the Friends of the Los Angeles County Law Library through the generous support of Pacific Western Bank.
Classes fill up fast, register today to reserve your seat! All registrants must check-in 10 minutes prior to class time to ensure your seat is not reassigned to waiting-list and walk-in attendees when classes are full.

Photography / Videography:
If you register for this class, you may be photographed or recorded. By registering for this class you are giving the LA Law Library your consent to photograph, videotape, record and broadcast your picture, likeness, voice and statements.  

No legal advice:
LA Law Library does not provide legal advice. LA Law Library provides legal resources and assistance with legal research as an educational service. The Law Library is pleased to offer our patrons the opportunity to obtain assistance from third party legal service providers at this and other events within the Library. However, the Library does not control and is not responsible for the content or scope of any assistance given by those providers.

Tuesday, April 28, 2020:  12:00 p.m. — 2:00 p.m. - CANCELLED - Click here to view online class

Effectively communicating the value of your product or service is essential to your business success. Learn how to attract and retain your customer base through creative branding, channel marketing, and smart promotion.

Class covers:

• Defining and protecting your brand
• The different marketing channels available, and the strengths and weaknesses of each
• How to integrate branding and marketing across multiple channels and platforms
• Basing your marketing initiatives on research and data
• Approach to marketing on a budget

Presented by Erin Kapczynski:
Erin Kapczynski has built her career as a marketing executive in media, technology and advertising. Currently serving as consultant and advisor to leading Silicon Beach startups and mid-stage businesses in adtech, Erin is helping to grow the next wave of unicorns. She has helped the likes of Demand Media (now LeafGroup), MomentFeed, System1, Ranker and Greenfly tell their stories and get new customers.

Erin's passion for marketing centers on looking at how a business can transform and grow, leveraging data and user experience, while building customer trust. Erin helps clients plan and execute customer acquisition, content creation, and branding—often tying these pieces together to generate growth.

Coming into the role via acquisition, Erin was formerly VP of Marketing for the media and technology platform Purch, where she oversaw all global consumer and corporate marketing that grew audiences and accelerated ad sales and lead-gen deals for partners to well over $100M in annual revenue.

Prior to Purch, Erin served as VP of Marketing at Panache, an early mover and market-leading digital video adtech business that was acquired by WPP. She also held senior-level marketing positions at Herbalife's HQ and Move.

True to Erin's borderline obsessive love of all things digital media, she has served as Interactive Emmy Awards judge, IAB MIXX Awards judge, and continues mentoring individuals and tech start-ups in the L.A.-area, as well as guest lecturing at the city's premier universities, including UCLA.

Registration fees: FREE - sponsored by the Friends of the Los Angeles County Law Library through the generous support of Pacific Western Bank.
Classes fill up fast, register today to reserve your seat! All registrants must check-in 10 minutes prior to class time to ensure your seat is not reassigned to waiting-list and walk-in attendees when classes are full.

Photography / Videography:
If you register for this class, you may be photographed or recorded. By registering for this class you are giving the LA Law Library your consent to photograph, videotape, record and broadcast your picture, likeness, voice and statements.  

No legal advice:
LA Law Library does not provide legal advice. LA Law Library provides legal resources and assistance with legal research as an educational service. The Law Library is pleased to offer our patrons the opportunity to obtain assistance from third party legal service providers at this and other events within the Library. However, the Library does not control and is not responsible for the content or scope of any assistance given by those providers.

Tuesday, May 5, 2020:  12:00 p.m. — 2:00 p.m. - CANCELLED - Video for this class will be coming soon.

Every business decision must be made with an eye toward the bottom line. Learn to accurately assess your business’ financial outlook and plan for the future by understanding the basics of business accounting and finance.

Class covers:

• How to apply the fundamentals of financial modeling to set realistic, achievable goals
• How to apply basic accounting concepts to ensure an accurate financial snapshot of your business
• How to use key financial statements like income, balance sheet, and cash flow
• Apply what you learn to real-life “case studies” of businesses in different financial situations
• Pros and cons of different accounting software available to small businesses

Presented by Gary Krausz:
Gary Krausz provides audit, accounting and consulting services to middle-market businesses and not-for-profit organizations in Southern California. He is a member of the California Society of Certified Public Accountants and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA.) He also holds the Certified in Financial Forensics (CFF) credential offered by the AICPA. Gary serves on the Accounting Principles and Auditing Standards Technical Committee which is the highest technical committee of the California Society of CPAs on accounting and auditing issues; Gary also helps plan the annual Accounting and Auditing Conference of the CalCPA Education Foundation. Gary regularly teaches undergraduate level accounting courses at UCLA Extension.

Gary holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of California, San Diego and a Master of Accounting degree from the University of Southern California. Outside of work, Gary serves on the Board of Directors and is the Treasurer for The Executives, a support group for the Los Angeles Jewish Home, volunteers for his children's school PTA, and various other community outreach and educational committees of the California Society of CPAs.

Registration fees: FREE - sponsored by the Friends of the Los Angeles County Law Library through the generous support of Pacific Western Bank.
Classes fill up fast, register today to reserve your seat! All registrants must check-in 10 minutes prior to class time to ensure your seat is not reassigned to waiting-list and walk-in attendees when classes are full.

Photography / Videography:
If you register for this class, you may be photographed or recorded. By registering for this class you are giving the LA Law Library your consent to photograph, videotape, record and broadcast your picture, likeness, voice and statements.  

No legal advice:
LA Law Library does not provide legal advice. LA Law Library provides legal resources and assistance with legal research as an educational service. The Law Library is pleased to offer our patrons the opportunity to obtain assistance from third party legal service providers at this and other events within the Library. However, the Library does not control and is not responsible for the content or scope of any assistance given by those providers.