Curtis counsels a broad range of international clients – from startups to Fortune 500 companies and universities – on intellectual property strategy, commercialization, licensing, and complex business and technology matters.
Curtis practice includes patent prosecution and portfolio development, intellectual property strategy, licensing, corporate development, new entity formation, transactional counseling, startup and growth-stage financing, and litigation financing. He regularly advises clients across a wide range of technologies, including artificial intelligence, software and applications (including copyright protection), wearable and consumer devices, aerospace and satellite systems, sensors and IoT, quantum computing, imaging and photonics, security and blockchain technologies, medical devices, and advanced hardware systems. His work includes securing patent protection in the United States and internationally, including China, Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Brazil, Mexico, and Taiwan.
Curtis brings substantial commercialization experience to his practice. His early career as an entrepreneur and business owner resulted in more than 100 issued patents as an inventor, the substantial majority of which were licensed, sold, or commercialized with industry, resulting in aggregate eight-figure outcomes. He regularly assists clients in assessing the commercial value of technology, structuring licensing and enforcement strategies, enforcing infringed patents, defending allegations of infringement, and aligning intellectual property portfolios with broader business objectives. This background informs his practical, business-oriented approach to advising startups, growth companies, universities, and investors.
Curtis also serves as trusted counsel to public, private, and not-for-profit organizations, including research universities in the United States and abroad. He advises executives, entrepreneurs, and boards of directors on infringement and freedom-to-operate matters, strategic investments, opinion work, venture capital and private equity financing, stock offerings, and complex commercial transactions.
He is the office managing partner of the firm's Boulder office. Under his leadership, the office has expanded its intellectual property, contract, and strategic advisory offerings, as well as its work with university and innovation-driven clients.
Curtis served four years in the United States Air Force, where he was stationed primarily in the United Kingdom. He maintains a regular presence in both the United States and Europe, supporting his international practice.
Before entering private practice, Curtis worked as a design, systems, and project engineer with BAE Systems, Lockheed-Martin IR Imaging Systems, Loral Infrared & Imaging Systems, Honeywell Electro-Optics division, and Hughes Aircraft Electro-Optics and Data Systems Group. His engineering background provides a deep technical foundation that enhances his ability to develop effective and commercially focused intellectual property strategies.
Curtis earned a B.S. and M.S. in engineering (optics) and a B.A. in history from the University of Rochester, a J.D., cum laude, from New England School of Law, and an M.B.A. from the University of Denver's Daniels College of Business.