Philip J. Cardinale

Phil Cardinale is a partner and intellectual property practice group leader at Smith Anderson.

In his practice Phil focuses on technology transactions, intangible asset management and the defense and assertion of the full spectrum of intellectual property rights. His most frequent matters involve brand strategy, trademarks, trade dress, copyright and product design law, as well as the licensing, development and commercialization of those rights and products through strategic transactions. He regularly advises on IP disputes and litigation at the federal, state and agency levels. The transactional side of Phil’s practice includes negotiating software, data and other technology contracts. He often represents companies in the retail and hospitality, apparel/footwear, software/data, and biotech sectors that range from multinational corporations to startups.

Phil has long been a leader in the legal profession and has served since 2012 as an American Bar Association Liaison to the World Intellectual Property Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations. He has chaired numerous ABA copyright and trademark committees, and in 2019 was a winner of the ABA IP Section Outstanding Leadership Award. In 2023, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper appointed Phil to serve on the state’s Board of Science, Technology & Innovation, which supports research applications and their potential impacts on commercial innovation throughout the state.