The Entrepreneur Law Group LLC team is led by Jack Russo. Jack Russo is also the founding partner in the Palo Alto law firm of both Russo & Hale LLP and now Computerlaw Group LLP.

Mr. Russo originated some of the early thinking on intellectual property (IP) protection of the “look and feel” of computer software and he has been involved in a number of software cases. His 1985 article, Copyright in the “Look and Feel” of Computer Software published in The Computer Lawyer and pioneered the subject.

Mr. Russo is a member of the State Bars of California, New York, and Washington, D.C. He holds his JD from UCLA School of Law as well as dual M.B.A. degrees from Columbia University and from UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business; he also holds a joint Bachelor’s and Master’s degree from City University of New York in Urban Administration and Computer & Information Science.

Before becoming an attorney, Mr. Russo worked full-time as a computer programmer and software analyst. Mr. Russo is a Judge Pro Temp for the Santa Clara Superior Court and an Arbitrator and a Mediator for the United States District Court for the Northern District of California as well as for the American Arbitration Association. He has an active ADR practice with experience in over 500 cases. He is the Chairman of the non-profit Foundation for Creativity in Dispute Resolution.

BAR ADMISSIONS

United States Supreme Court
Federal Circuit Court of Appeals
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals
Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals

State of California
State of New York
District of Columbia
State of Washington
State of Oregon
State of Hawaii

EDUCATION

UCLA School of Law, J.D., 1980, Order of the Coif.
Columbia University, M.B.A. (Beta Gamma Sigma honors)
University of California at Berkeley, Haas Business School M.B.A. (Management of Technology)
City University of New York, Brooklyn College, B.A., M.A. 1977.
Joint Degree in Urban Management and Computer and Information Science (Magna Cum Laude)

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS

American Bar Association (Section on Intellectual Property)
Computer Law Association
National Institute of Trial Advocacy
American Inns of Court (San Francisco Intellectual Property)
Chairman, Foundation for Creativity in Dispute Resolution

HONORS

Judge Pro Tempore, Santa Clara Superior Court
Arbitrator/Mediator, U.S. District Court (N.D. California)
Arbitrator/Mediator, American Arbitration Association
Adjunct Professor, University of Santa Clara (Santa Clara, CA)
Adjunct Professor, American Business School (Athens, Greece)
Chair, ABA Subcommittee on Computer Software & Trade Secrets

PUBLICATIONS

Co-Author, “Protection of Computer Software After the Copyright Act of 1980,” Law & Business, 1981
“Pre-Trial and Discovery in a Software Marketing Dispute,” Law and Business, 1982
“Copyright Law and Computer Software Disputes,” Practising Law Institute, 1983
“Microcomputer Software Marketing Agreement Disputes,” Practising Law Institute, 1985
“Copyright in the Look and Feel of Computer Software,” The Computer Lawyer, February, 1985.
Co-Author: “The Impact of the Uniform Trade Secrets Act on California Trade Secret Law,” Trade Secret Law Reporter, May, 1985
“Software Copyright Protection,” 5 Software Publisher’s Association News 3-4 (No. 1 January 1988)
“Developments in Copyright Protection of Computer Software,” 2 International Computer Law Adviser 9-12 (No. 4 January 1988)
“Recent Developments in the Copyright Protection of the Look and Feel of Computer Software: Apple Computer v. Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard,” 6 Software Protection 1-15 (No. 10 March 1988)
“Copyright Protection of Virtual Reality,” ABA Science and Technology 1992
“New Frontiers: Copyright Protection in Virtual Reality Works,” 15 The National Law Journal S1 (No. 6 October 12, 1992).
Co-Author, “Software „Look and Feel‟ Protection in the 1990’s,” 15 Hastings Communications and Entertainment Law Journal 571-603 (1993)
Co-Author, “The Law of Virtual Reality,” 3 Computer Software Ch. 18 (1994)
“Liability on the Internet,” San Francisco Intellectual Property Association (March, 1995).
Co-Author, “The Law of the Internet in California,” National Business Institute (2001).
Co-Author, “The Law of the Internet in the United States,” National Business Institute (2007).
Co-Author, “Intellectual Property Law Update,” National Business Institute (2008).
Co-Author, “Inventors & Their Innovations,” National Business Institute (2008).