Lerson Tanasugarn

Certified Thai Patent Agent
Registered Free-Lance Consultant

Listed in the Thai Government Consultant Roster (Ministry of Finance)

Click HERE to download Lerson Tanasugarn's mini CV (in Thai)

On the judiciary side, Lerson has been involved with intellectual property law drafting for over 16 years. He served for many years as Expert Scientist attached to the Standing Committee on Science and Technology in the House of Representatives. He was also an Associate Judge at the Central Intellectual Property and International Trade Court in Bangkok.

On the academic side, Lerson has been co-teaching a graduate-level course at Chulalongkorn University Law School on "Law and Technology" for over a decade. He has also lectured at Ram Kamhaeng University Law School on intellectual property law for a number of years. He is often seen as invited guest speaker in intellectual property short courses and seminars, both in Thailand and overseas.

In the late 1980s, Lerson started assisting the Thai patent office (then under the Department of Commercial Registration but presently under the Department of Intellectual Property or DIP) draft the amendments to the existing intellectual property codes plus a few new intellectual property laws to fulfill Thailand's obligations under an Annex of GATT (later known as Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, or TRIPS).

In the 1990s Lerson was among a group of very few people who were trained to become technology transfer consultants. His training covered programs conducted by the Thai Patent Office, the European Patent Office, the Japanese Patent Office, the Association of University Technology Managers, the Licensing Executive Society, Franklin Pierce Law Center, and many more. Besides basic training in technology transfer and negotiation, Leson was also trained in transer of technologies in specific fields such as pharmaceuticals, multimedia, and computer programs. In the management of a technology transfer office, Lerson went through 2 internships in Japan and 2 in the United States in addition to attending the AUTM Graduate Course. These tools-of-the-trade he picked up overseas have been customized to fit Thai laws and applied to actual cases.

From 1996 to 2001, Lerson's private practice in technology transfer was briefly interrupted as he got a royal appointment as an Associate Judge at the Central Intellectual Property and International Trade Court. Over this period, he took part in presiding over about 200 criminal cases and about 40 civil cases, including high-profile ones like a CD copyright infringement case masterminded by a Chinese with alleged assistance from a Thai tycoon, and a landmark case on hard-disk loading of infringed computer programs from MicroSoft. During this time, he also wrote a Technology Licensing Manual (in Thai and English) that was supported by a grant from the German Government. He also wrote several acaemic papers on intellectual property policy.

In the 2000s, after completing a full term as associate judge, Lerson came back to full-stream licensing and put together a modern licensing office concept for NSTDA. He opened LERSON.NET as a hub for his research projects and LERSON.COM as a center for his private practice.

Education Profile:

• AB magna cum laude in biology (Harvard),
  AM in biology (Harvard), PhD in biology (Harvard)
• Postdoctoral training (North Carolina)
• Visiting Scholar at Center for Fluorescence Research (Carnegie-Mellon)
• Basic Training in Intellectual Property (AOTS/JIII- Japan)
• Basic Training in Licensing (AUTM)
• Basic Training in Licensing (Licensing Executive Society, LES)
• Special Training in Search and Examination (EC-ASEAN)
• Special Training in Drafting Patent Applications (EC-ASEAN)
• Special Training on National Examinations for Patent Agents (WIPO/EPO)
• International Intellectual Property Rights Internship (Michigan State University, two internships)
• Special Training in Multimedia Protection (London)
• Special Training in Computer Contracts (London)
• Special Training in Pharmaceutical Intellectual Property Rights (Chicago)
• Special Training in Computer Software Licensing (AUTM)
• Training on designingTechnology Licensing Offices (AOTS)
• ALI Course (Advanced Licensing Institute, Franklin Pierce Law Center)
• AUTM Graduate Course (Phoenix, AZ)
• Intellectual Property Training of Trainers Course (DIP/JICA)

Past Consulting Experience:

• Intellectual property consultant for the National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) with its three technology center: BIOTEC, MTEC, and NECTEC
• Intellectual property consultant for the Thailand Research Fund (TRF)
• Intellectual property consultant for Chulalongkorn University Intellectual Property Institute (CUIPI)
• Intellectual property consultant for the Department of Intellectual Property (DIP)
• Intellectual property consultant for several companies that conduct technology transfer
• Advisor to the Board, NIC (member of The Nation group of companies)
• Advisor to the Chairman, Biophile Corporation
• Advisor to the Chairman of the Board, Travel Authority of Thailand (TAT)
• Numerous cases handled while being Director at CUIPI for about 8 years

Past Public Appointments:

• Science & Technology Policy Advisor to the Prime Minister of Thailand
• Advisors to the Minister of Science & Technology (2 appointments), Minister of University Affairs, Minister of Labor and Social Welfare, and Minister of the Prime Minister's Office in Charge of Tourism
• Expert Scientist Attached to the Standing Parliamentary Committee on Science and Technology
• Associate Judge of the Central Intellectual Property and International Trade Court
• Member of the Board, National Operation Center (NOC), Office of the Prime Minister
• Member of the National Research Council of Thailand (Engineering and Industrial Research)
• Member of the Board, National Center for Material and Metal Technology (MTEC, 2 terms)
• Member of the Ministerial Committee Overseeing the Drafting of Thai Intellectual Property Laws, Including the Thai Copyright Act, Patent Act, Trademark Act, Trade Secret Act, Integrated Circuit Layout Design Protection Act, etc.
• Member of the Civil Service Commission Subcommittee on Scholarships
• Director, Office of Intellectual Property Policy Research, Chulalongkorn University Intellectual Property Institute
• Intellectual Property Project Directors, National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA), the National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT) and the Thailand Research Fund (TRF)
• Faculty Member at Chulalongkorn University Faculty of Science (over 15 years)
• Member of Thailand's Space Development Committee (over 15 years)

Membership Affiliations:

• Member, Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM)
• Former Member, Licensing Executive Society (LES)
• Member, Chartered Institute of Patent Agents (CIPA)
• Life Member, and Former Member of the Board, Science Society of Thailand Under the Royal Patronage
• Life Member, Computer Association of Thailand
• Member, Advisor, and Former Vice President, Volunteer Radio Association (VRA)
• Member of the Executive Board, PAVENA Foundation for Women and Children

Last Update: 1 December 2004.