Thomas C. Folsom
Professor
thomfol@regent.edu
- Associate Professor (2002-2009) and Professor of Law (2009 -present) Regent University School of Law, principally in Trademarks, Copyrights, Patents, Payment Systems, and Business Associations. Member, University Senate (2005-present); Member, (2006-2007) University Curriculum and Instruction Review Committee.
- Board Member, Board of Governors, Virginia State Bar Anti-Trust, Franchise and Trade Regulation Section, 2002-2009.
- J.D. 1978, Georgetown University Law Center; Editor, American Criminal Law Review.
- B.S. 1971, United States Air Force Academy.
- Associate Law Clerk, Hon. Robert L. Kunzig, United States Court of Claims, 1977-78 (one of the predecessor courts to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit).
- Law Clerk, Hon. Sherman G. Finesilver, United States District Court for the District of Colorado, 1978-79.
- Associate, Holme Roberts & Owen, Denver, CO, 1979-85, concentrating in corporate finance and securities law, mergers & acquisitions, oil & gas and commercial real estate.
- Assistant (1985-89) and Associate (1990) Professor of Law, University of North Dakota School of Law, principally in contracts, intellectual property, and securities regulation.
- Private practice in Denver, CO, 1990–95 concentrating in intellectual property.
- Partner, Davis, Graham & Stubbs, Denver, CO, 1996-99 concentrating in intellectual property.
- Lecturer and Adjunct Professor of Law, University of Denver College of Law, 1993-98, Intellectual Property.
- Adjunct Professor of Law, University of Colorado School of Law, 1997-2000, Patent Law.
- Partner (1999-2001) and Counsel (2001), Chrisman, Bynum & Johnson, Boulder, CO, concentrating in intellectual property.
- Visiting Professor of Law, University of Denver College of Law, 2001-02, Contracts, Corporations.
- Special Counsel, Faegre & Benson, 2001–2002, (Minneapolis-Denver-Boulder), with the Boulder branch office concentrating in intellectual property (Chrisman, Bynum & Johnson merged into Faegre & Benson in 2001).
- Visiting Summer Term Professor, Gonzaga University Law School, 2004, Payment Systems.
- Admitted to practice: Colorado (inactive), United States Supreme Court, United States Patent and Trademark Office (registered Patent Attorney).
Fields
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Journal Articles and Work in Progress
Regulating Poisoned Flowers: Recoding Cyberspace (manuscript in progress).
Can't Stop the Signal: The Library in Space and Transformational Copyright Law - Specifying Fair Use in the Public Interest (manuscript in progress).
Cyberspace
Space Pirates, Hitchhikers, Guides, and the Public Interest: Transformational Trademark Law in Cyberspace, 60 Rutgers Law Rev. 825 (2008).
First Place (Professional Category): 2009 Ladas Memorial Award Competition --International Trademark Association (INTA)
Missing the Mark in Cyberspace: Misapplying Trademark Law to Invisible and Attenuated Uses, 33 Rutgers Computer & Tech. L. J. 137 (2007).
Defining Cyberspace (Finding Real Virtue in the Place of Virtual Reality), 9 Tulane Tech. & IP Law Journal. 75 (2007).
Third Place (Professional Category): 2006-2007 Ladas Memorial Award Competition -- International Trademark Association (INTA)
Intellectual Property
Towards Non-Neutral Principles of Private Law: Designing Secondary Liability Rules for New Technological Uses, 3 Akron Intell, Prop. J. 41 (2009).
Truth in Intellectual Property Revisited: Embracing eBay at the Edge, 2 Akron IP Law J. 69 (March 2008).
Normative Jurisprudence
Evaluating Supernatural Law: An Inquiry into the Health of Nations (The Restatement of the Obvious, Part II) 21 Regent Law Rev. 105 (2008).
The Restatement of the Obvious: Or, What’s Right Got to Do With It? 16 Regent U. Law Rev. 301 (2004).
Reconsidering the Reliance Rules: The Restatement of Contracts and Promissory Estoppel, 66 N.D. Law Rev. 317 (1990).
Future Speaking Commitments (Accepted or Pending)
Remedies without Wrongs: Disintegrating Liability Rules from Property Rules in Intellectual Activity-- 62nd Annual Meeting of the Southeastern Association of Law Schools, Palm Beach, Florida, August 4, 2009
Poisoned Flowers: Overcoming Obstacles and Recoding Cyberspace to Resolve Trademark-Type Conflicts-- 9th Annual Intellectual Property Scholars Conference, NY, NY, August 6-7, 2009
Lectures Outside the United States
An American's View of the Foundations of Law in the Competitive Market--A Survey of US Business and Transactional Law, lectures (10 hours) delivered to students at Emanuel University, School of Management, in Oradea, Romania, December 8-12, 2008.
Reflections on Supernatural and Natural Law, lectures (8 hours) delivered at the Regent University School of Government, Study Abroad Program at Hertford College, Oxford, England, invited as part of Dr. Joseph Kickasola's course on Biblical and Qur'anic Hermeneutics, July 7-18, 2008.
Selected Remarks, Papers and Presentations
Preserving a Hitchhikers' Guide to Cyberspace: The Attorney's Ethical Dilemma (Resolving Focal Point Conflicts in Cyberspace)--131st Annual Meeting of the International Trademark Association, Seattle, Washington, May 16-20, 2009.
The Google Library Project, work in progress, abstract presented to the Intellectual Property Roundtable at Catholic University of America School of Law, Washington, D.C., January 30, 2009.
From Refah Partisi v. Turkey ("shar'ia law is incompatible with fundamental principles of democracy") to Regensburg ("not to act reasonably is contrary to the nature of God") and Beyond - the Role of Supernatural Law in the Global Polity, lecture delivered to faculty and students of New St. Andrews College, Moscow, ID, November 21, 2008.
Secondary Liability for IP Infringement: Theory, Practice and Prediction, remarks and paper delivered as an invited roundtable participant at the Second Annual IP Scholars Forum at the University of Akron School of Law (November 13-14, 2008).
Factors of the Financial Crisis: a Foundational Approach, remarks delivered at a panel discussion co-sponsored by the Federalist Society and the Business Transaction Law Society at Regent University, Virginia Beach, Virginia, October 7, 2008.
Internet Law (Trademarks, Contracts and the Future of Internet Law), remarks and written materials presented at the Norfolk & Portsmouth Bar Association Continuing Legal Education Seminar, Norfolk, VA (September, 2008).
Craig Boyd’s “A Shared Morality: a Narrative Defense of Natural Law Ethics,” 34 Religious Studies Review No. 3, 182 (September 2008) (book note).
The Law of the Horse (12 Years After): A Law for Cyberspace, the Metaverse and the New Machines, remarks delivered at the Southeastern Association of Law Schools Annual Meeting, Palm Beach, Florida (SEALS Conference, August 2008).
Reflections on Supernatural and Natural Law, lectures delivered at the Regent University, Robertson School of Government’s Study Abroad Program at Hertford College, Oxford, England, invited as part of Dr. Kickasola’s course on Biblical and Qur’anic Hermeneutics, July, 2008
Lying About Fraud, lecture delivered at the Christian Prelaw Conference, Virginia Beach, VA (March 13-15, 2008).
Making Sense of Cyberspace, work in progress presentation at Drake University College of Law, Intellectual Property Scholars Roundtable, Des Moines, IA (February 22-23, 2008).
The Changing Landscape of IP Remedies After eBay, remarks and comments at the University of Akron School of Law, First Annual Intellectual Property Scholars Forum, Akron, OH (November 8-9, 2007).
Conflicts in Cyberspace, remarks delivered at the Southeastern Association of Law Schools Annual Meeting, Amelia Island, Florida, (SEALS Conference, August 2007).
Studies in Justice: the End of Christian Integration, remarks delivered at the Christian Pre–Law Conference, Virginia Beach, Virginia, March 2007.
Downstream Consequences to Businesses and Individuals from the USA Patriot Act and Related Legislation, co–author and co–presenter (remarks, materials and dramatization) at James Kent American Inn of Court (CLE accredited), Feb. 2007.
Seeing Justice in Our Time: The Idea of Justice through the Lens of Faith, in 4 Minutes or Less, remarks delivered at the Conference of Religiously Affiliated Law Schools, Baylor University School of Law, Waco, Texas, April 1, 2006.
Nomophobia: Or, Does it Take a Cosmos to Raise a Genuinely Autonomous Self?, remarks delivered at the Christian Pre–Law Conference, March 3, 2006.
Missing the Mark in Cyberspace, remarks delivered at the Southeastern Association of Law Schools Annual Meeting, Hilton Head, South Carolina (SEALS Conference, July 2005).
The Weightier Matters of the Law, remarks delivered at the Christian Pre–Law Conference, Virginia Beach, VA (Feb 2005).
The Foundation of the Law: Solid Rock or Sinking Sand, remarks delivered at the American Bar Association—Law Students Division, 4th Circuit Conference, Virginia Beach, VA (Feb 2005).
Music in the Classroom?, remarks delivered at the Southeastern Association of Law Schools Annual Meeting, Panel on Technology, Kiawah Island SC (SEALS Conference, July 2004).
The Impotence (and Importance) of Legal Theory, remarks delivered at the Christian Pre–Law Conference, Virginia Beach, VA (February 2004).
Current Trends in Corporate Law, Enron etc.--Who Do You Trust? A Refresher on Fraud, Agency, Accounting and Corporate Finance, remarks and written materials presented at the Chesapeake Bar Association's Fall 2003 Continuing Legal Education program (October 22, 2003)
The Importance of Philosophy to Biblical Integration, remarks presented to the Christian Pre-Law Advisor Conference of 2003 (Virginia Beach, February 2003)
Bases of Artists' Rights, paper presented at the Third Visual Arts & the Law Conference, Taos, NM (CLE International, August 2001).
Electronic Dissemination of Fine Art (Contractual and Digital Self Help Strategies for the New Millennium), paper presented at the Third Visual Arts & the Law Conference, Taos, NM (CLE International, August 2001).
E-Agreements for E-Commerce, paper presented at the E-Commerce Conference, Denver, CO (CLE International, May, 2000).
UCC Article 2B or Not 2B: Shrink Wrap and Click Wrap Licenses, paper presented at the Computer Law Conference, Denver CO (CLE Providers, October, 1999).
Controlling Derivative Uses: Copyright and Other Issues, paper presented at the Second Visual Arts & the Law Conference, Santa Fe, NM (CLE International, August, 1999).
Fine Art Reproductions and Merchandising Rights, paper presented at the Visual Arts & the Law Conference, Santa Fe, NM (CLE International, August, 1998).
