Gerald Ferguson serves as the Coordinator for the Intellectual Property, Technology and Media Group in Baker Hostetler’s New York office and as the National Co-Leader of Baker Hostetler’s Privacy, Security and Social Media Team.
He has assisted a wide range of businesses in developing intellectual property protection and monetization programs, including
financial institutions, Internet service providers and apparel companies. He regularly structures and closes transactions involving the licensing and assignment of intellectual property rights and Internet assets. He assists clients in establishing website operations and social media strategies that limit potential liabilities and comply with applicable laws, regulations and industry selfregulation. Mr. Ferguson has protected his clients’ rights and business operations (i) in state and federal court; (ii) in national and international arbitrations; and (iii) before state Attorneys General and the Federal Trade Commission.
Mr. Ferguson assists in creating and implementing national and global privacy policies and has extensive experience advising companies suffering data security breaches that may trigger obligations under state and federal breach notification laws. He is able to advise clients regarding notification obligations quickly and efficiently, using a regularly updated checklist identifying the key (sometimes contradictory) elements of (i) the 46 state breach notification laws; (ii) the breach notification provisions in federal laws, such as Gramm-Leach-Bliley and HIPAA; and (iii) industry self-regulation, such as the Payment Card Industry rules. As part of his proactive approach to an incident response, he works with forensic consultants to develop the substantive opinions necessary to support a determination of whether disclosure of a breach is required. If disclosure is required, he assembles a multidisciplinary team to manage the notice process and minimize (i) reputational harm, (ii) damage to customer relations and (iii) legal liabilities.
Mr. Ferguson is a regular contributor to Baker Hostetler’s Data Privacy Monitor blog, available at
www.dataprivacymonitor.com. He has authored numerous published articles, including “Internet Business Carries Risks,” New York Law Journal (January 10, 2000), “The Risks of B2B Marketplaces,” New York Law Journal (November 6, 2000), co-authored “Enforcing Electronic Contracts in the Americas,” International Law Practicum NYSBA (Autumn 2000) and “Building a New Profit Model for Digital Visual Content,” New York Law Journal (September 17, 2001). He regularly lectures before legal industry and continuing legal education groups, such as the Practising Law Institute and the New York State Bar Association. Mr. Ferguson is Co-Chairman of the Intellectual Property Committee of the New York State Bar Association, International Section.