Background
Craig Armstrong is Counsel to the firm in the Waterloo Region Office. He graduated from the Royal Military College of Canada in 1973 with honours in Mechanical Engineering, and served four years in engineering and computer programming positions in the Air Branch of the Canadian Armed Forces. He then attended the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, and was called to the Bar of Ontario in 1982, qualifying as a registered patent and trade-mark agent the same year. Craig has spent his entire legal career in Waterloo Region, and brought his intellectual property boutique to BLG in 2001.
Craig was a Canadian champion skydiver in 1975, and recently resumed the sport. Current tamer interests include cycling, golf and travel.
Areas of Practice
- Advising on intellectual property management, procurement and enforcement
- Providing patentability searches and opinions, and advising on patent protection strategies
- Preparing, filing and prosecuting patent applications (registered for practice before the Canadian and United States Patent Offices)
- Preparing, filing and prosecuting trade-mark registration applications
- Licensing, distribution, manufacturing and other commercial agreements relating to intellectual property
- Due diligence relating to IP in commercial transactions (mergers, acquisitions, financings)
- IP audits
Professional Experience
- Hundreds of client inventions patented, in many countries worldwide, in diverse technical fields including automated manufacturing systems and components, software, hand tools, sporting goods (especially hockey equipment and in-line skates), paper cups, logging equipment, shredders, heavy machinery, handheld wireless devices, etc.
- Developer of Canpat™ proprietary intellectual property management software
Recent Speaking Engagements
- “The Martian Patent System”, K-W IPIC Group (November, 2006)
- “Intellectual Property 101”, IMPACT University of Waterloo Exposition, Waterloo, Ontario (September, 2006)
- “Tales from the Trenches: Dealing with the Small Inventor”, Fedération internationale des conseils en propriété industrielle meeting, Quebec City (June 2005)
- “Patent Law and Practice: Canada vs. United States”, Washington DC Law Firms (March, 2005)
- “International Patenting”, TechAlliance, London, Ontario (November 2004)
- “Beyond Bricks & Mortar: Determining the Value of Intellectual Property”, BLG / Deloitte Public Seminar (June 2004)
- “From Ideas to Products to Profit$”, BLG / Vertex Intellectual Property Strategies / Adventus Research Public Seminar (May 2004)
- “Changes in the World of International Patenting”, BLG Public Seminar (February 2004)
- “IP Management 101: Profiting From Intellectual Property”, BLG Public Seminar (October 2003)
- “Tripping on Trademarks: Protection and Pitfalls”, BLG Public Seminar (September 2003)
Professional and Community Activities
- Founding and current Member of Communitech
- Member of the Ambassador Advisory Board, Canada’s Technology Triangle
- Fellow, Intellectual Property Institute of Canada (IPIC)
- Member, American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA)
- Member, Fedération internationale des conseils en propriété industrielle (FICPI)
- Member, Canadian Bar Association
- Member, Waterloo Law Association
- Member, Law Society of Upper Canada
