Overview
Jeff Dodd has more than 40 years’ experience helping companies with their corporate, securities, intellectual property and technology transactions. His clients range in size from Fortune 50 companies to emerging businesses.
Jeff has extensive corporate, securities and corporate finance experience, including public and private securities offerings, merger and acquisition transactions, joint ventures, corporate partnering and similar arrangements, private debt and equity financing transactions (including private equity and venture capital), and regulatory, governance and compliance matters.
Jeff advises clients concerning their IP strategy and monetization programs, licensing and joint venture transactions and data security, privacy and protection issues. Jeff is the co-author of Modern Licensing Law with University of Houston Law Center Professor and former Dean, the late Ray Nimmer. The treatise covers all aspects of intellectual property licensing and has become one of the industry’s most respected publications on the topic. He also became co-author of Drafting Effective Contracts also with Professor Nimmer. Jeff is routinely asked to write, speak and present on various topics.
Jeff continues to serve his alma mater as a University of Houston Honors College Advisory Board Member. He is also a past President and former board member of the University of Houston Law Foundation. He is a lifetime fellow in both the Texas Bar Foundation and Houston Bar Foundation.
Experience
Corporate, Securities and Corporate Finance: experience in diverse domestic and international corporate transactions, including:
- representing various participants in public and private merger and acquisition transactions
- representing issuers and underwriters (and investment bankers) in connection with public and private securities offerings
- representing private equity, venture capital and other investment groups or funds, as well as portfolio companies in structuring, documenting and negotiating investment arrangements
- structuring, negotiating and documenting the formation of private equity, venture capital and hedge funds
- advising regulated entities (including broker/dealers and investment advisers) as to regulatory and compliance matters
- structuring, negotiating and documenting joint venture, corporate partnering and similar arrangements
Intellectual Property, Technology, Data Security, Electronic Commerce and Commercialization: extensive experience in a variety of domestic and international intellectual property, information, and business process-related transactions, including
- representing various parties in structuring, negotiating, enforcing, and unwinding licensing transactions, domestic and international, in numerous industries, including energy, computer technology, biotechnology
- negotiating, enforcing and unwinding ERP and outsourcing arrangements
- advising domestic and international clients on data protection, security breach, security and privacy laws and devising compliance strategies
- structuring, negotiating, documenting and unwinding strategic ventures and alliances where intellectual property is the core asset
- planning, design and implementation of electronic commerce and trading strategies and arrangements, domestic and international
- counseling, structuring, negotiating, and documenting intellectual property and information, acquisition, commercialization transactions
Accolades
Honors & Recognitions
- Ranked among IAM Global Leaders (2025), Patent Transactions
- The Best Lawyers in America, Corporate Law and Information Technology Law (1999-2019, 2023-2024)
- Recognized as a Trademark Star (2016-2024), Transactions Star (2021-2024), and Patent Star (2016-2019) in the IP STARS Handbook, Managing Intellectual Property
- Highly Recommended for Patent Transactions in Texas in the IAM Patent 1000 (2012-2014, 2016-2024) , Intellectual Asset Management
- Ranked among IAM Global Leaders (2022-2025), Intellectual Asset Management
- Selected as Lawyer of the Year for Information Technology Law, Texas, The Best Lawyers in America, 2020.
- Recognized as a Acritas Star for outstanding performance (2018)
- Lawyer of the Year in Information Technology Law in Houston, Best Lawyers (2013 and 2016)
- Who’s Who in Law, Intellectual Property, Houston Business Journal (2015)
- Recipient, 2015 Dean’s Award, University of Houston Law Center
- Recipient, 2014 Distinguished Service Award, Institute of Intellectual Property and Information Law, University of Houston Law Center
- Recommended for Patents: Licensing (2017-2018, 2020), Copyright (2017-2019), Trademarks: Litigation (2018-2019), Trademarks: Non-Contentious (2018-2019), Patent: Litigation (Full Coverage) (2017), Patent: Prosecution (2017) and Outsourcing (2013-2014), Legal 500 United States
- Named a “2012 BTI Client Service All-Star” by BTI Consulting Group
- Profiled as one of the leading Technology (2005-2009) and Intellectual Property (2010-2018) lawyers in Texas, Chambers & Partners USA: America's Leading Business Lawyers
- Recognized as a Texas Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers by Thomson Reuters (published in Texas Monthly) (2003-2005, 2011-2019)
- AV Preeminent rating in Martindale-Hubbell
Affiliations
Professional
Member
- Houston Bar Association
- Life Fellow
- State Bar of Texas
- Electronic Commerce Sub-Committee
- Business Law Section
- American Bar Association
- Section on Business Law
- Section on Intellectual Property Law
- Forum Committee on Franchising
- Licensing Executives Society
- American Intellectual Property Law Association
- International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP)
Past President and Board Member - University of Houston Law Foundation
Advisory Board Member - Wolters Kluwer Author Advisory Board (2024-25)
Advisory Board Member - Honors College of the University of Houston
Fellow - Texas Bar Foundation, Houston Bar Foundation
Insights
Legal Updates
Events & Speaking Engagements
Publications
News
Education
JD, University of Houston Law Center, summa cum laude, 1979
BA, University of Houston, magna cum laude, 1976
Admissions
Texas
Areas of Focus
- Corporate
- Banking and Finance
- Energy Technology
- Energy Transition
- Private Equity
- Corporate Governance and Board Advisory
- Corporate Transparency Act
- Mergers and Acquisitions
- White Collar, Regulatory Defense and Investigations
- Trade Secrets Counseling and Litigation
- Trademark – Non-Contentious
- Trademark Proceedings
- Copyright Counseling and Litigation
- Intellectual Property
- Intellectual Property and Technology Transactions
- Emerging Growth and Venture Capital
- Financial Services
- Food Industry
- Outsourcing, Technology and Commercial Contracting