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Steven L. Henning, PhD
Partner
Marks Paneth & Shron Steven L. Henning, PhD is formerly the Academic Fellow in the Office of the Chief Accountant at the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and Assistant Professor of Accounting in the Edwin L. Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University. He previously held an appointment at the University of Colorado at Boulder. He received his PhD from the University of Wisconsin at Madison and an MBA from the University of Miami (FL). Dr. Henning took a lead role in the unique clients services with Marks Paneth & Shron, a boutique Wall Street firm specializing in high profile cases. Dr. Henning has been fully engaged in helping clean up a number of the infamous cases that have reached national attention. He employs valuation models to complement his experience in public accounting, academe and the SEC. He has been especially successful in helping his clients negotiate settlements among the SEC, Department of Justice and the NY Attorney General. Dr Henning is the Taskforce Program Director and serves on the Procedures committee at the SEC. He is also involved in FASB's intangible asset project to effectively provide a pivot point among industry, the accounting standards body, the regulatory community and Wall Street. While teaching he focused on courses in financial reporting and analysis at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. He has received several university-wide teaching awards including the Outstanding Faculty Award at Southern Methodist University and the Proctor & Gamble Teaching Excellence Award and Teaching Recognition Award at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Professor Henning has also taught courses for Goldman, Sachs & Co. to worldwide investment banking hires at both the analyst and associate levels. Dr. Henning is a Certified Public Accountant and is an active member of The American Accounting Association. His research on financial accounting and analysis appears in the Journal of Accounting Research, The Journal of the American Taxation Association, Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Issues in Accounting Education, and other accounting and business periodicals. |
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Tracey Thomas
Vice President & Chief IP Strategist,
American Express Tracey is a world class innovator in intellectual property management. He is responsible for the company’s global portfolio and aggressive in developing ways to recognize and create more value and cash from the IP asset class. His ability to manage changes inside the enterprise is an understated talent that Tracey willingly shares in his book: Driving IP Deals; Internal Decisions and Processes available from the Taskforce’s Knowledge to Net Worth Press. |
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Edward W. Gray, Jr.
The Taskforce Attorney
Partner, Morrison & Foerster, LLP Mr. Gray is a partner of Morrison & Foerster. Mr. Gray's practice includes intellectual property evaluation and strategy, trade secret programs, corporate technology management, patent strategy, trademark prosecution and litigation. Mr. Gray is particularly adept at using technology to sharpen management perspectives and to improve organizational performance. Morrison & Foerster is a full service intellectual property law and consulting practice. It specializes in intellectual property and technology-related asset acquisition and litigation including the trial of matters involving patent, trade secret, trademark, copyright, entertainment law, unfair competition, antitrust and related commercial disputes. Its attorneys also provide extensive strategy counseling to clients seeking to protect and extract maximum benefit from their technology portfolios, brands, and creative ideas. Mr. Gray has extensive domestic and international experience respecting the structuring of mergers, acquisitions and disposals having served as Corporate Vice President, Information Services and as General Attorney with R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company, a large commercial printer. Subsequently, Mr. Gray served as Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of Federal-Mogul, a leading auto parts supplier. Mr. Gray is Chair-Elect of the Intellectual Property Law Section, National Bar Association and Recipient of the Government Intellectual Property Law Association ("GIPLA") Honorary Cup for presentations for years 1999 and 2001. Admitted to the practice of law in Illinois, California, the District of Columbia and the United States Supreme Court, Mr. Gray is a member of the American Bar Association, California State Bar Association, and the District of Columbia Bar Association. Mr. Gray is a Principal in the Council for Excellence in Government. While in Government, Mr. Gray served in the Senior Executive Service at the United States General Accounting Office as a participant in Exchange XV of the White House program, The President's Commission on Executive Exchange. Advisor to the Board, Peer Environmental Consultants, PC, Washington, D.C., 1993-Present; Member, Washington, D.C. Red Cross; Board Member, Chicago Child Care Society, 1979-1984. Chairman of the Hearing Board of the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission of the Illinois Supreme Court, 1974-1984. In 1970, Mr. Gray received his J.D. from Columbia University Law School, New York, NY; 1967: B.A., Sociology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL. Mr. Gray also holds a certificate in foreign and comparative law from the Parker School of Columbia University Law School. He is an "AV" rated attorney and is listed in Who's Who in America. He is a recipient of the GAO Review Best Article Award for his article "Public Sector Truths, Private Sector Myths: A Contrast of Management Styles." He is also the author of "Negotiating the Departure of the Dangerous Employee" which was originally presented to the Council of Chief Legal Officers of the Conference Board which has been widely republished. He is also a regular contributor to "Legal Links" in The Internet Connection |
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Karl Fink
Managing Partner, Fitch Even Tabin and Flannery, a Taskforce Strategic partner since 2001
Karl has established a strong tradition of leadership in the Taskforce collaborative process. He listens to the other person's opinion. He asks questions for better understanding and then, if not satisfied, he makes a constructive suggestion that offers a better way to express the opinion or meet a common need. This is an extra-ordinary leadership technique that encourages expression of opinion, provides help and direction rather than mere criticism that provides neither. The dignity of the other party is always reinforced while his encouragement and support is a positive example of the Taskforce's "best and brightest" in action. Employment: Karl is the managing partner of the law firm Fitch, Even, Tabin & Flannery, 120 South La Salle Street, Suite 1600, Chicago, Illinois 60603, O: 312-577-7000, email: krfink@fitcheven.com. Karl is a partner in the firm's Litigation Practice. He has extensive experience in commercial and tort litigation, with experience in patent, trademark, copyright, and trade secret actions. Representative cases in which Karl had primary or significant responsibility include: Overhead v. Chamberlain, 194 F.3d 1261 (Fed. Cir. 1999); Greisz v. Household Bank, 176 F.3d 1612 (7th Cir. 1999); Energy Services Air Conditioning v. Nicor, Inc., 46 USPQ 2d 1639 (N.D. Ill. 1997); Paramount Packaging Corp. v. Cello Bag Co., Inc., 909 F.2d 1494 (Fed Cir. 1990), Whittaker Corp. v. UNR Industries Inc., 911 F.2d 709 (Fed. Cir. 1990), Cabot Corp. v. Thai Tantalum Inc., 25 USPQ2d 1619 (Del. Ch. 1992), Blanas v. Alwan, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9315; Corrales v. American Cab Co., 524 N.E.2d 923 (Ill.App. 1988); Reliance Ins. Co. v. Nick J. Giannini, Inc., 511 N.E.2d 755 (Ill. App. 1987). Professional Memberships/Affiliations: Admitted to Illinois Bar (1981), U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the Seventh Circuit, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois (member of Trial Bar). Registered to practice before U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (1990). Member of American Bar Association, Illinois State Bar Association, and Chicago Bar Association. Karl is on the list of Leading Illinois Attorneys, and is past president of the Chicago Lincoln American Inn of Court Education: University of Michigan (B.S.E. 1978, magna cum laude); ( J.D. 1981) Tau Beta Pi. |
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Bill Coughlin
"One of the biggest issues facing Corporate America today is the
need for a more meaningful way to evaluate the intangible
assets and intellectual capital for management and investor
use alike. Our Taskforce is developing valuation methods and creating strategic
alliances to support implementation at the national and international levels!"
-- Bill Coughlin, President, Ford Global Technologies & IP Counsel Ford Motor Company Honorary Taskforce Chair |
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