Florida Litigation Attorney | Silver, Garvett & Henkel

Ira Cohen Partner

Ira Cohen is a partner of Silver, Garvett & Henkel. He is a member of the Florida and New York Bars and has been practicing law for 25 years. Ira has extensive experience representing corporations, business entities, and individuals in a wide variety of complex commercial disputes (through litigation and alternative dispute resolution) and in business transactions. His current clients include hoteliers, cruise line operators, real estate developers, seafood companies, flower merchants, HVAC companies, publishing enterprises, and telecommunications providers. He practices in employment law, including dispute resolution through litigation and ADR and also drafting and negotiation of agreements for employment, non-competition, non-disclosure, management, consulting, independent contractor, agency, marketing, promotion, and sponsorship agreements. Ira also provides general corporate representation and assistance on transactional matters such as the sale and purchase of businesses, planes, boats, and helicopters; franchising; licensing; and marketing, promotional, and sponsorship agreements.

Ira has particular expertise in the field of Intellectual Property (“IP”) law encompassing such areas as copyright, trademark, and unfair competition law, as well as patent law and trade secret claims. His practice extends to the written and musical arts and entertainment, as well as the branding of products and/or services, franchising, and internet law. He counsels clients in the development of their intellectual property assets and rights, and to protect their businesses, books, computer programs, designs, musical compositions, graphical art works, paintings, plays, poems, screenplays, sculptures and other three-dimensional works, and sound recordings from predatory or piratical conduct, such as infringement, counterfeiting, and other species of commercial theft and tortious conduct. He handles agreements related to the licensing, transfer, and assignment of IP rights, as well as royalty agreements. Ira prepares and prosecutes intellectual property applications seeking registration before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. He also handles foreign filings and disputes outside the U.S. He has worked on IP matters involving trademark and related issues in various Central and South American countries, including Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Ecuador, Venezuela, and Costa Rica, as well as the Caribbean (Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, Saint Maarten\St. Martin, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Montserrat, and the Dominican Republic).

Ira has litigated cases in the state and federal trial and appellate courts in Florida and New York. He has also handled various federal proceedings and litigation matters in California, the District of Columbia, Georgia, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington.

Ira served as judicial law clerk to the Honorable Harold J. Raby, U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Southern District of New York (1982-85).

Ira obtained his Master of Laws degree (LL.M.) from New York University School of Law (1985) and his Juris Doctor degree from Brooklyn Law School (1981). He obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree magna cum laude from Queens College, C.U.N.Y. (1977).

Ira is married and the father of three daughters. His interests include antique book and coin collectibles, Latin music (all genres), reading, foreign travel, medieval and renaissance European painting, English comedy, and the culture, history, gastronomy, and people of Spain.

Practice Areas

• Business Litigation
• Intellectual Property
• Contracts and Business Transactions
• Alternative Dispute Resolution
• Employment Contracts and Disputes

Admissions

• The Florida Bar, 1983
• The New York Bar, 1983
• U.S. Supreme Court
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second, Eleventh and Federal Circuits
• U.S. District Courts – Northern, Southern and Middle Districts of Florida; Southern and Eastern Districts of New York

Federal Judicial Clerkship

• Honorable Harold J. Raby, United States Magistrate Judge, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, 1982-85

Education

• New York University School of Law, LL.M., 1985
• Brooklyn Law School, J.D., 1981
• Queens College, C.U.N.Y., B.A., magna cum laude, 1977

Government Service

• Administrative Law Judge, City of New York (New York, Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn, and Richmond Counties), 1997-99.
• Arbitrator, Civil Court of the City of New York (New York and Queens Counties), 1989-99.

Languages

• English and Spanish (fluent)

Memberships

• Florida Bar, Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Section
• New York State Bar Association, including the Arts and Sports Law Section and the Intellectual Property Law Section
• Federal Bar Association, including the Federal Litigation and Intellectual Property Sections

Prior Representations

• Shen Manufacturing Co., Inc., v. Suncrest Mills, Inc. and K-Mart Corp., 673 F. Supp. 1199 (S.D.N.Y. 1987) (represented client that prevailed at trial where adverse parties held liable for selling and distributing infringing products in violation of the Lanham Act and unfair competition laws)
• Regatta Sport, Ltd. v. Telux-Pioneer, Inc., 20 U.S.P.Q. 2d 1154 (U.S.P.T.O., T.T.A.B., 1991) (obtained order for client that set aside judgment and order cancelling trademark registration)
• Gasser Chair Co., Inc. v. Infanti Chair Manufacturing Corp., 943 F. Supp 201, 40 U.S.P.Q. 2d 1554 (E.D.N.Y., 1996) (represented client that prevailed at trial where adverse party held liable for infringement of trade dress rights under the Lanham Act and common law)

Other Distinctions

• Guest Lecturer at Brooklyn Law School on Federal practice and procedure, including training of judicial law clerks
• Author and\or editor of various articles and publications such as “The Linguistic Challenge for the Small Claims Division of the Civil Court of the City of New York: Spanish for Arbitrators (a Primer)” (1995), and also was editor of the Portugese version of the “Small Claims Guide for Litigants” (New York City, Civil Court, 1996)