Brown Networking, Dinner, & Legal Experts Roundtable
Join the Brown Alumni Entrepreneurship Group for an evening of networking, dining, and drinks with fellow Brunonians. This special event features a roundtable of distinguished Brown alumni lawyers offering valuable legal insights and advice for entrepreneurs. Whether you're a seasoned professional or just starting out, this is a unique opportunity to connect, learn, and grow your ventures.
Networking Opportunities
Engage with NYC-based Brown entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs, alumni and students, share ideas, and build relationships. Chat directly with legal experts and fellow attendees, forming connections crucial for your entrepreneurial journey.
Key Highlights
Networking: Meet fellow entrepreneurs, Brown alumni, and current students.
Dinner: Enjoy delicious platters of savory treats and refreshing beverages.
Community Building: Expand your network within the NYC startup community.
Expert Panel Discussion: Gain legal tips from seasoned lawyers on liability risks, employment law, intellectual property, and commercial transactions.
Interactive Q&A Session: Ask your legal questions and get answers from the pros.
We look forward to seeing you there!
This event has been generously sponsored by Matthew Haicken of Haicken Law.
HaickenLaw.com
Venue courtesy of Council Advisors.
PANELISTS
MICHELE BERDINIS
Brown University Class of 1981
University of San Francisco School of Law Class of 1985
Michele Berdinis ‘81 has over 25 years of experience practicing intellectual property law. In 2015, she launched Beeline Legal, a web-based expert system that delivers legal services to help clients protect the trademarks they love at a price they can afford. Michele is a frequent speaker on all IP topics and has recently been focusing on the copyright issues associated with use of generative AI.
Email: michele@beelinelegal.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/micheleberdinis
DEBORAH K. BRANCH
Brown University Class of 1982
Harvard Law School Class of 1985
Deborah K. Branch is the principal attorney and founder of Branch Law, PLLC, based in New York, NY. Her practice focuses on counseling clients on a wide variety of corporate commercial transactions and agreements, including master services agreements, non-disclosure agreements, social media partnerships, and licensing agreements. Her career experience includes working as an in-house general counsel, managing complex commercial transactions (including acquisitions and financing arrangements), as well as intellectual property issues which arise for parties engaged in creating and distributing both original and licensed content.
Before establishing her solo practice in 2021, Deborah served as Acting General Counsel for over five years at Ruder Finn, a global public relations firm that serves Fortune 500 companies. Prior to working with Ruder Finn, she was the General Counsel at Asia TV USA, the U.S. affiliate of Zee Entertainment Enterprises, a multinational media and entertainment company based in India, which distributes television channels and on-demand content globally.
Deborah has extensive experience as a business and legal affairs executive in major entertainment companies, including Cablevision/AMC Networks, In Demand, Paramount Pictures, and Miramax Films. She has negotiated and drafted agreements related to digital and broadband technology, multi-platform distribution, and the production, financing, distribution, and marketing of television programming and motion pictures.
Earlier in her career, Deborah was an associate in the corporate practice group at Hughes Hubbard & Reed and Anderson Kill & Olick, P.C., in New York, NY. She holds an A.B. in History from Brown University and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. Born and raised in New York’s Hudson Valley (Rockland County), Deborah currently resides in Harlem, U.S.A.
Email: law@dkbranch.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/dkbranch1220
MATTHEW HAICKEN
Brown University Class of 2002
Brooklyn Law School Class of 2007
Matthew Haicken has been practicing personal injury law since his graduation from law school in 2007. He takes great pride in getting his clients the money that they deserve.
Prior to starting his own firm in 2015, Matt worked at several leading NYC injury law firms, learning from the best in the business. He then spent three years at insurance giant AIG, where he worked with top-notch lawyers from around the country and learned how insurance companies fight to keep money out of the hands of deserving injured claimants.
Matt has recovered millions of dollars for his clients via settlements and verdicts. The insurance companies know he is not afraid to take cases to trial. While most cases settle due to the LAW TEAM's meticulous preparation, some of his proudest accomplishments as a lawyer are his courtroom victories
His most recent such verdict was in October of 2022, where a Nassau County jury returned a verdict of $200,000 when the final offer from Statefarm was a mere $15,000.
In addition to fighting for his clients in court, Matt advocates to change laws that would improve their chances of success. He was instrumental in writing the bill that would allow convicted felons to serve on juries in New York. With Matt's guidance, the bill passed the New York State Senate in 2019.
Matt lives in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, with his wife Julie, their son, and their beagle Willa, the LAW TEAM's mascot, who can often be found sitting on Matt's lap at the office.
Email: matthew@haickenlaw.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/matthewhaicken/
ERIC M. NELSON
Brown University Class of 1981
NYU Law Class of 1985
Eric has been practicing law since 1985 and has done so in all sorts of settings. He began his career at the quintessential Wall Street law firm, bounced around to several others, served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, taught at three different law schools (Fordham, Seton Hall, and Whittier), and has been in his own (sole) practice since May 1995.
He has served as an arbitrator for FINRA, the New York City Civil Court (Small Claims Part), and the Joint Committee on Fee Disputes and Conciliation here in New York City, and has also served on the New York County Supreme Court Independent Judicial Screening Panel, which makes recommendations for appointments to that court. He and his wife also co-founded Professional Games, Inc., a company that used to sell a board game she created (known as LAWSUIT!).
Eric presently focuses his practice principally in the area of labor & employment law, executive contracts, and compensation, although he is a litigator by background, and continues to also work in the areas of co-op and condominium law, business formation, professional (lawyer, MD, etc.) liability, and several other areas.
Among the cases he has handled, he represented perhaps the oldest person to ever win a case under federal age discrimination law (82 at the time of the verdict) and more than 60 airline mechanics who successfully sued the largest industrial labor union in the United States (the IAMAW) for failing to properly represent them in connection with an airline merger (in which, after decades of service, they had suffered potentially career-ending layoffs).
Contact via: martindale.com/attorney/eric-m-nelson-463162/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/eric-nelson-007370173/
WILL NEWMAN
Brown University Class of 2004
NYU Law Class of 2007
Will Newman is a litigator and white-collar criminal defense lawyer. He litigates contract and employment disputes and defends clients accused of fraud, national security crimes, and other statutory violations.
He began his career as a transactional attorney at White & Case LLP in 2008 and then worked in the litigation departments of Hughes Hubbard & Reed LLP and Becker Glynn Muffly Chassin & Hosinski LLP. He is currently a partner at Oberheiden, P.C., and maintains a solo practice in which he represents a small group of clients.
Will studied at Brown University, NYU School of Law, and the University of Copenhagen. Before becoming a lawyer, he taught technology classes to elementary school students at the Village Community School in Manhattan.
The Wall Street Journal and the New York Post have cited Will as an authority on legal issues. He is an associate editor of the ABA magazine Litigation News and the author of the blog Unpredictable. Will has also won public speaking awards in English and French.
Email: will@willnewmanlawyer.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/will-newman-6719524/
MODERATOR
JABARI-JASON TYSON-PHIPPS
Brown University Class of 2005
Washington University in St. Louis School of Law in 2008
Jabari-Jason Tyson-Phipps, Brown ’05, graduated from the Washington University in St. Louis School of Law in 2008. He co-founded FareHarbor and the JJTP Group PLLC, a legal and consulting practice. His career includes serving as a Foreign Service Special Agent with the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, where he earned a Meritorious Service Award for his role in dismantling an international human trafficking ring, rescuing hundreds of victims.
Currently, Jabari serves as General Counsel at LMPG Wealth Management LLC and of counsel at Pierce and Kwok LLP. He also runs the JJTP Group and the Tyson Twins Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit focused on bridging the gap between accessible and equal justice. His legal practice primarily focuses on intellectual property, business, startups, securities, and entertainment law.
His extensive career also includes teaching technology classes to elementary school students, studying law abroad in Chile, Argentina, and Singapore, and earning a graduate certificate in international business and trade law. He has managed high-profile international security operations, including at the 2008 Olympics, and modernized cybersecurity capabilities.
He is admitted to practice in New York, the United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court, with a pending admission to the Pennsylvania bar.
Jabari has also received mediation certification from American University Mediation Services and completed advanced training courses at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center.
In addition to his legal and entrepreneurial pursuits, he has served as an adjunct professor at East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania’s School of Business and is actively involved in the academic and alumni communities. He serves on the boards of the Brown Club of New York and the Brown Alumni Entrepreneur Group, underscoring his dedication to fostering the next generation of leaders and entrepreneurs.
Email: jjtp@jjtpgroup.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jjtpesq/