


Sean Cooper, a second year Widener Law student on the Harrisburg Campus, will have a distinctive opportunity to serve as a law student reporter at the ABA’s Intellectual Property Law Section’s 29th Annual Conference that will be held from April 2nd through the 4th in Arlington, VA.  He is 1 of 13 law students selected by the Law Student Action Group to act as a law student reporter for the conference.Sean sat down to discuss his path to law school and his interest in intellectual property and the law. Sean always had some interest in pursuing law school, but after graduating from college he needed to work. He found work with a legal services company and while there “the idea of law school solidified.” He knew that law school was where he wanted to be and he found his place.Sean observed how important getting involved beyond the classroom.  When one of his professors, Tonya Evans, suggested he start his own blog as a way to get involved and keep an eye on the hot topics in law, Sean did just that. He created Cooper’s Copyright Blog (available at www.cooperscopyrightblog.com), and then went one step further and got active on Twitter, where his handle is coopsiplawblog.His blog and twitter activity brought him to the attention of the Law Student Action Group.  They contacted Sean and asked him if he wanted to attend the Intellectual Property Law Section’s 29th Annual Conference and live tweet during the sessions and blog about the experience. Sessions will cover several sessions, including “Copyright Fair Use Transformed? The Evolving Role of the First Factor in the 21st Century” and “Best Practices in Filing &amp; Managing Trademarks.”Sean is excited about the opportunity, saying that he expects it will be an enriching experience and that it will be a great way to increase his knowledge of intellectual property law. He also expects that it will be a wonderful opportunity to network and make professional connections while having a little fun.Sean also had a little advice for those interested in taking advantage of opportunities available to law students. “The hard part is to figure out how to get started,” he observed of blogging and social media. He mentioned that he started by re-tweeting news stories, which he would look at from a legal angle. He realized that he might have something to say that other people wanted to hear.“You have to have an agenda with how you use it . . . find your voice and be brave. The way you gain legitimacy is by being a part of the conversation,” Sean says.His final piece of advice was to be engaged and involved in your area of law, and “put yourself out there.”