Lisa Nicole Winningham

I attribute my success to my mentor, Joe Valerie, who took me under her wing when I started working in intellectual property and taught me everything she knew. Intellectual property litigation is very technical, dealing with patents for Wi-Fi technology, chips, and similar technologies, and there are a lot of ins and outs. She really showed me the ropes and made the biggest impression on me in my career. I'm happy to say that on February 9th, she joined our firm as a senior legal assistant, so I brought her to me. Now I joke that we have the dream team. I feel like I'm almost paying her back because she taught me so many things, and now she's able to work for the firm remotely from home. She's also doubled her salary and is getting great benefits. I feel like I was able to pay back my mentor, and I really love that.

The best career advice I’ve ever received came from my mother, who encouraged me to continue my education. Professionally, I also credit mentorship as a pivotal factor in my growth—especially guidance from Joe Valerie, who took me under her wing and taught me the technical skills essential for IP litigation.

I would say to find a mentor as fast as you can. In the legal field, and I think in any other field, you have good and bad experiences. There are good doctors, bad doctors, good attorneys, bad attorneys, good cops, bad cops all around. Don't be afraid if you're in a firm and you're not learning what you need to learn, and you're not appreciated, and you're not moving forward, to still look for something better. In my experience, I think sometimes I may have stayed longer at places than I should have because I was taught that you get a job and you stick with it because it doesn't look good for your resume to have a bunch of jobs and jump around. But you need to fight for what you want. Don't be stagnant. Go get what you want. Recognize traits in people, good and bad. When you find the good traits, you stick with a person and you learn from them. And when you find the bad traits, sometimes it's time to move on. That would be my best advice.

One of the biggest challenges and opportunities in patent litigation today is navigating a relatively small, international community where relationships are critical. With remote work becoming increasingly common, maintaining visibility—especially on platforms like LinkedIn—has become important for connecting with recruiters and uncovering career opportunities. Additionally, operational or financial issues within firms, such as vendors not being paid on time, can present challenges that require careful management and adaptability.

One of my most important values is giving second chances to those who need them most, which is why I'm so passionate about rescuing senior dogs through the SPCA. I feel like senior dogs often sit in shelters and they need a home, and they deserve a second chance. My husband and I donate our time and money to the SPCA, and we've adopted several senior dogs over the years. We just rescued a dog about three months ago, and back in August we had to put down our senior Great Pyrenees who we'd only had for about two years because he was pretty old when we got him. But now we have a new one and he's fabulous. Supporting the SPCA and rescuing senior animals is a big part of who we are. Beyond that, I value perseverance and keeping my head down and eyes on the prize. I've always focused, always worked hard, and always provided for my family through all of life's challenges. I choose to look at my challenges, including my battle with breast cancer, in a positive light because I believe that at some point in my future, somebody is going to need my experience, whether it's family, a friend, or maybe someone I don't know well at all. So I choose to take it as a blessing because somebody's going to need it in the future.