John Gary Maynard, III

Co-head of the firm’s intellectual property practice, John Gary has 30 years of experience with broad-based intellectual property matters and software litigation, counseling the world’s leading companies on protecting their brands. Numerous ranking and other publications recognize him as an industry leader, including Chambers, Legal 500, and Best Lawyers. Clients have told Chambers that he “provides a very strong service” (2023) and Legal 500 that he is “always informative, helpful, and clear” (2023). World Trademark Review 1000 calls him a ”well-rounded practitioner who is equally brilliant across the contentious/non-contentious divide” (2024), notes that he “knows how to get things done” (2023), and has said he exhibits “keen awareness of the evolving social media scene and the issues it presents for innovative brand owners” (2022).

John Gary particularly focuses his IP practice on brand protection; software audits and disputes; online enforcement, including domain name counseling and litigation under the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP); trade secret protection; IP asset licensing; and litigation under the Lanham Act and the Copyright Act.

• Develops, implements, and manages global trademark prosecution, maintenance, and enforcement programs—including strategy for social media—for Fortune 1000 companies in a variety of industries, including well-known financial institutions, retailers, a major airline, and a large chemical company, under both hourly and alternative fee arrangements.
• Represents Fortune 1000 companies in brand protection disputes, including trials in federal court, injunction hearings, mediations, and proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB).
• Convinced court to deny petition for a temporary restraining order (TRO) in an action involving trade dress packaging for a retail product.
• Counseled software licensees on software audit issues resulting in savings in excess of $150 million.
• Represented major retailer in litigation of copyright infringement and breach of contract matter arising from a software audit, reaching favorable settlement.
• Regularly counsels clients on proactive and reactive trade secret and other intellectual property protection, including cases involving information security and business partner agreements.
• Regularly counsels major retailer on advertising issues.
• Assisted well-known academic medical institution in co-branding transaction involving the use of proprietary cancer treatment technology.
• Served as trademark counsel to the board of an IP holding company for a Fortune 1000 company.
• Represented major gaming software vendor in copyright infringement and breach of contract matter, obtaining favorable jury verdict after three-week trial.
• Developed holistic and client-specific trade secret protection and overall IP protection programs for Fortune 200 company and provided training and follow-up for implementation and maintenance. Programs included physical safeguards, premises controls, computer-use policies, document management procedures, and policies governing employees and visitors.

• Recommended for Trademarks: Litigation (2020-2024), Trademarks: Non-Contentious (2020-2024), Patents: Licensing (2020-2021), and Patents: Litigation (Full Coverage) (2020), Legal 500 United States
• Recognized as a Leader in Intellectual Property in Southern Virginia (2017-2018, 2020-2024), Chambers USA
• Recognized as a Leading Trademark Professional in Enforcement & Litigation and Prosecution & Strategy in Washington, DC (2020-2024), World Trademark Review 1000
• Recognized as a Best Lawyer for Trademark Law (2023-2024) and Litigation – Intellectual Property (2015-2024), The Best Lawyers in America
• Named among the Legal Elite for Intellectual Property/Information Technology Law (2022), Virginia Business
• Named among the Top Forty Under 40 (2008), Style Weekly

• Member, The International Trademark Association (INTA)