About

The Inventors Defense Alliance is a nonpartisan, nonprofit, 501(c)(4) advocacy organization that works to build support for inventors' rights, safeguard justice, and protect access to capital.

Objectives

Serve as the voice for American inventors seeking access to capital through a range of advocacy programs and educational initiatives.

Build public support for inventors' rights by highlighting the value of intellectual property and the role IP protections play in supporting the economy and enabling entrepreneurs to create and build wealth, compete in the marketplace, and pursue the American dream.

Support legislators and government leaders who understand the importance of strong IP rights and equal justice under the law.

Build a broad-based coalition of pro-innovation stakeholders to fight for inventors' rights.

Leadership

Kristen Osenga

Chief Policy Counselor

Kristen Osenga, Chief Policy Counsel

Kristen Osenga is Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and the Julie & John Nowak Faculty Research Scholar and Professor of Law at University of Richmond School of Law, where she teaches and writes in the areas of intellectual property, patent law, law and language, and legislation and regulation.

An active member of the Federal Circuit Bar Association and the American Intellectual Property Law Association, Osenga received a B.S. degree in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Iowa, an M.S. degree in Electrical Engineering from Southern Illinois University – Carbondale, and a J.D. from the University of Illinois College of Law, where she graduated magna cum laude. After law school, she practiced at the law firm of Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett, & Dunner LLP, where she did patent prosecution and litigation. She then clerked for the Judge Richard Linn of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Alan Heinrich

Board Chair

Alan Heinrich, Board Chair

Alan Heinrich is an attorney in Los Angeles, California, where he focuses on intellectual property litigation. He is an adjunct faculty member at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he teaches Patent Intensive, an advanced patent law seminar. Heinrich has also taught Federal Courts as an adjunct professor of law at Loyola Law School.

Heinrich received his B.A., magna cum laude, from Washington and Lee University, and a Ph.D. in Classics from the State University of New York at Buffalo. He earned his J.D., summa cum laude, from Loyola Law School, where he was valedictorian and chief articles editor of the Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review.

Earl "Eb" Bright

Board Member

Earl "Eb" Bright, Board Member

Eb Bright is president and general counsel of ExploraMed Development, a venture-backed medical device incubator in Mountain View, California, dedicated to the identification, creation, and development of novel solutions to meet the unmet health needs of patients around the world.

Bright is a founder of several companies, a patent attorney, and has served on the executive management teams of many start-ups, including Acclarent, Neotract, Vibrynt, Moximed, Nuelle, Willow, and X9. An inventor on 21 U.S. patents, he is a member of the United States Patent Public Advisory Committee, Director of IP Policy at Stanford Byers Center for Biodesign, and a co-founder and board member of the Alliance for U.S. Startups & Inventors for Jobs (USIJ). Bright earned his J.D. and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Oklahoma and holds M.B.A.s from Columbia University and University of California, Berkeley.

Hon. Paul R. Michel

Board Member

Hon. Paul R. Michel, Board Member

Paul Redmond Michel was appointed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in March of 1988 by President Ronald Reagan. On December 25, 2004, he assumed the duties of Chief Judge, a position he held until retiring from the bench on May 31, 2010. After his elevation to Chief Judge, he served as one of 27 judges on the Judicial Conference of the United States, the governing body of the Judicial Branch. In 2005 he was appointed by Chief Justice Rehnquist to also serve on the Judicial Conference’s seven-judge Executive Committee. Since retiring from the court, he has been active in both consulting on pending cases and in publicly advocating for revival of the patent system.

Judge Michel received his B.A. from Williams College and his J.D. from the University of Virginia.

Russell Slifer

Board Member

Russell Slifer, Secretary

Russell Slifer is a distinguished patent attorney and Principal at Schwegman Lundberg & Woessner. He served as Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Deputy Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) during the Obama Administration, where he expertly managed the agency’s daily operations. Previously, as the inaugural Director of the Rocky Mountain Region Patent Office, Slifer was the principal liaison between the USPTO and the innovation community in the region. His extensive experience in both strategic and operational roles underscores his expertise and leadership in patent law. Prior to his government service, he held the title of chief patent counsel at Micron Semiconductor, where he expertly managed a vast patent portfolio, safeguarding cutting-edge technologies and contributing to the company’s success.