Jorge L. Contreras
Jorge L. Contreras is an Associate Professor at American University’s Washington College of Law. His research focuses primarily on the effects of intellectual property structures on the dissemination and production of technological innovation, with a focus on basic scientific research and technical standards development. He has studied these effects in industries ranging from genomics and bioinformatics to sustainable building materials, telecommunications and computer networking. Professor Contreras is Co-Chair of the National Conference of Lawyers and Scientists (NCLS) and Co-Chair of the American Bar Association Section of Science & Technology Law’s Committee on Technical Standardization. He also serves as a member of the Advisory Council of NIH’s National Center for Advancing Translational Science (NCATS) and the National Academy of Science’s Committee on Intellectual Property Management in Standard-Setting Processes. Professor Contreras is the editor of the Technical Standards Patent Policy Manual (ABA Publishing: Chicago, 2007) and has written numerous articles, book chapters and blog postings relating to intellectual property and standards development. Prior to joining the faculty of American University, Professor Contreras was Senior Lecturer and Acting Director of the Intellectual Property Program at Washington University in St. Louis and a partner at the international law firm of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP. He is a graduate of Harvard Law School (JD) and Rice University (BA, BSEE).