“For the Governed” Blog Series

By: Tim Markison

Introduction

My name is Tim Markison.  I’m 59 years old, I’m married to my high-school sweetheart, Laura.  We’ve been married for 40 years.  We have two daughters Amy and Patty, we have one son-in-law Logan, and we have one granddaughter Isabella.  I am a patent attorney with an electrical engineering degree from Illinois Institute of Technology and a Juris Doctorate from Loyola University Chicago.  I’ve been practicing patent law for 32 years and for the past nine years, I’ve had two full-time jobs.  I’m the CEO of Athalonz, LLC and I’m a founding partner of the law firm Garlick & Markison (G&M).

With an engineering degree, a law degree, and with practicing patent law for 32 years, I’ve developed a unique, and sometimes conflicting, skill set for evaluating a variety of matters.  As an engineer, I’m trained to look at the entire system with mathematical precision, meaning there is only one right answer for a particular problem.  In the law, almost nothing can be evaluated with mathematical precision (there is rarely, if ever, one right answer to an issue).  As such, as an attorney, I’m trained to look at all sides of an issue by objectivity taking into account the subjective views of each side.  Patent law is a combination of the objective mathematical precision of engineering and the subjective abstraction of the law.  As a patent attorney, I’m trained in the precision of the written word and in diversity of interpretation of the written word.

Despite all of this training, I’m still a human being with experiences, opinions, belief systems, emotions, and other limitations that consciously and subconsciously influence me.  With the constraints of my humanness, it is my intent to objectively and honestly present my experiences and/or opinions and, whenever possible, provide evidence and/or data to support my statements.  My blogs will typically be regarding my personal experiences and/or opinions, my business experiences and/or opinions, and my patent law experiences and/or opinions.  The title of a blog will indicate whether the blog is personal, business, or patent related.

As for the name, “For the Governed”, it’s from a statement in the US Supreme Court case New York Times Co. v. United States, 403 U.S. 713 (1971), in which Justice Hugo Black wrote that, “The press was to serve the governed, not the governors”. The Government's power to censor the press was abolished so that the press would remain forever free to censure the Government. The press was protected so that it could bare the secrets of government and inform the people. Only a free and unrestrained press can effectively expose deception in government.”

As the owner of a small business and a small boutique law practice, I’m one of the little guys in business.  Unlike Large companies, small businesses have little to no influence on the governors.  Thus, small businesses are part of the governed; hence “For the Governed”.

About Athalonz:

Athalonz is a technology company based on Mesa, AZ.  It develops and sells athletic footwear, which incorporates its patented technology that leverages the laws of physics to improve athletic performance. 

About G&M:

Garlick & Markison is a patent law boutique firm that assists clients in building a patent business within their business using proprietary tools and techniques.