The wild and wooly world of intellectual property law is not for the the faint of heart.

And if you work in marketing or any creative field for that matter, it’s pretty much a guarantee that you will have to deal with a variety of IP issues, from simple trademark registrations to complex copyright entanglements. It’s a complex area of law that has become even more daunting with the growth of the internet. In fact, no area of law is more central to our business than intellectual property, and that’s why we’ve lined up the best legal counsel we could find to help us and our clients navigate that world.

The guy who’s got our back on IP matters is Stephen Baird, who heads up the IP and trademark and brand management practice groups at Winthrop & Weinstine here in Minneapolis. Not only are Stephen and his team experts in IP law, but they are also very comfortable in the non-traditional marketing realm. Their widely read blog, DuetsBlog, for example, sets the standard in the legal industry, and their posts on the IP issues of the day are both entertaining and informative for those of us who toil in the marketing trenches.

So, it’s no surprise that when Minnesota Lawyer magazine handed out its Attorney of the Year awards at ceremony that brought out the who’s who in the legal community last night, Stephen Baird was among the honorees. Congratulations, Stephen! We sleep better at night knowing we have you in our corner!