CHICAGO - McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff LLP (MBHB), a Chicago-based law firm specializing in patents, trademarks, and copyrights, is the official law firm sponsor of the 100th Race to Mackinac.
"MBHB is honored to participate in this century-long racing tradition up Lake Michigan," said Grantland G. Drutchas, the firm's managing partner.
Partner Leif R. Sigmond will be participating in the race this year aboard his T-10 class sailboat "Norboy." Sigmond, an active Chicago area sailboat racer, has run this race before. "The Race to Mackinac is always a great experience for any sailor, but this year it will be doubly special for me - not only because of the race anniversary, but also because my partners were chosen to be the official law firm sponsor." Sigmond said.
The 100th Race to Mackinac will begin on July 19, 2008 off of the Chicago Harbor Lighthouse. With the largest fleet in race history, more than 400 craft make the 333 mile trek. The race centennial will be celebrated on Mackinac Island with a gala fireworks display on Tuesday, July 22.
This race is only part of the firm's involvement in sailing. Last month, Team US 1, with Sigmond, and two other MBHB crew members, Marcus J. Thymian and Michael D. Gannon, placed third in the Patent Cup Regatta in Venice, Italy. In 2006, another team led by co-skipper Sigmond won the Patent Cup in Chicago. They were the first US team to win the event.
McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff LLP is an intellectual property boutique (patents, copyrights and trademarks) with 75 attorneys. It was founded in 1996, and has offices in Chicago and Washington. MBHB provides comprehensive legal services to obtain and enforce our clients' intellectual property rights, from navigating patent office procedures to litigating complex infringement actions. MBHB prosecutes patent and trademark applications in both the U.S. and abroad, handles intellectual property litigation matters in trial and appellate courts across the country, and counsels clients nationwide and worldwide on the enforcement and defense of their intellectual property rights.