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Charlene Azema counsels clients in domestic and international trademark and copyright portfolio management, including searches, prosecution, licensing, enforcement, due diligence and IP contracts. She also works with clients on developing IP procurement and expansion strategies and provides guidance on matters related to domain names, social media, and brand marketing and advertising. She has a business-minded focus for her clients and provides tailored strategies that address her clients’ business needs and goals.
Charlene represents clients in several industries including cryptocurrency and blockchain, fashion and apparel, food and beverage, ad tech, entertainment, film and media, technology and electronic devices, construction, medical devices and services, consumer goods, and restaurant services, among many others. She is a regular speaker on IP issues including via webinars, seminars, and to trade groups, and she was invited to speak at the APEC 2023 Conference.
Charlene is a member of the firm’s Executive Committee, Mentorship Committee and Diversity Committee.
She received her law degree from UCLA School of Law, her Masters in Business Administration from UCLA Anderson School of Management, and her bachelor’s degree with honors in Biology from UCLA.
- Honored as a 'Lawyer on the Fast Track' at The Recorder (ALM)'s California Legal Awards (2024)
- Selected as a winner of Profiles In Diversity Journal's 2023 “Diverse Lawyers Making a Difference Award”
- Named a “Top 10 DEI Champion of Orange County” in 2023 by the Orange County Coalition for Diversity in the Law (OCCDL)
- Recognized as a "World IP Leader" by World Intellectual Property Review (WIPR) (2023 - 2024)
- Named to the Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch guide, which “recognizes lawyers who are earlier in their careers for their outstanding professional excellence in private practice”, for Technology Law (2021 - 2025)
Knobbe Martens Fashion & Beauty Blog
- May I Still Call Her Daddy? IP Considerations for When Influencers Outgrow the Brands That Back Them
- Keeping up With the Kardashian-[Jenner]’s Trade Secret Battle
- Mask on and Gloves Off: Supplier Accused of Price Gouging While Masquerading as Authorized Distributor of 3M Products
- NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo Euro-Steps into Federal Court
- Misleading Ads are Not a Jeweler's Best Friend: The FTC's Crackdown on Diamond Ads
- The Crown Jewels: How to Protect Your Jewelry Designs
- When Plaid Goes Bad - Burberry Files Infringement Suit Against Target Over Burberry's Iconic Plaid Design
- How Does the Supreme Court's Recent Ruling on Incontinence Products Spill Over into Fashion?
Charlene Azema, Roberto Kunz-Hallstein, and Géraldine Arbant. "Reprint - Louis Vuitton ‘Damier Azur’ case_ distinctiveness in the EU.pdf (knobbe.com)", World Intellectual Property Review (December 2023)
Does Louis Vuitton Lack a Sense of Humor? The Parody Defense Is No Laughing Matter for Brand Owners - Article republished in World Trademark Review Daily (January 25, 2017) and The Licensing Journal (April 2017)
Charlene Azema, Jonathan Hyman, Loni Morrow, “If The IP Fits, Wear It: IP Protection for Footwear – A U.S. Perspective,” The Trademark Reporter (The Law Journal of the International Trademark Association), Vol. 108, No. 3 (May-June 2018). Download full article here
Charlene Azema, Jonathan Hyman, "My Other Bag - No Ordinary Bag," The Licensing Journal (May 2017)
Lynda Zadra-Symes, Charlene Azema, David Dremann, Loni Schutte, Paul Famiglietti, "Kluwer Copyright Law Smart Charts," Wolters Kluwer (2013, 2014)
Susan M. Natland and Charlene Azema, “Madrid Protocol Registrations not insulated from petition to cancel based on abandonment”, World Trademark Review Daily (October 30, 2012)
Speeches & Seminars
Speaker at the APEC 2023 Conference before APEC’s Intellectual Property Rights Expert Group
Panelist, Strafford CLE Webinar “ Acquired Distinctiveness in the EU After the Louis Vuitton” , October 10, 2023
Panelist MyLawCLE Webinar “IP on Social Media: Protecting companies’ copyright and trademark rights”, February 28, 2023
Panelist, Strafford CLE Webinar “Designer Jewelry, Knock-Offs, and IP Infringement”, September 13, 2022
Panelist, Strafford CLE Webinar – "Fair Use and IP Infringement on Social Media: Policing and Protecting Licenses, Copyright, and Trademark Rights" (February 2022)
Speaker, the FBA [Virtual] Paris Fashion Law and Innovation Conference – “Global Brand Protection” (2020)
Presenter, 2017 Women’s Jewelry Association Los Angeles – “In The Know: Business 101” Seminar (May 2017)