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New Hampshire Joins Data Protection Trend, Passes Comprehensive Data Protection Law
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Michael D. Stovsky

Chair, Intellectual Property Practice Group; Team Lead - IP and Technology Transactions
Cleveland
T.
216.363.4626
liamE

Mike leads Benesch's Intellectual Property, Technology Deals, Data Security and Privacy, and Blockchain and Smart Contracts practices.

He has nearly three decades of experience representing technology companies from start-up to growth stage, middle market to Fortune 50, as well as major regional and national venture capital and private equity funds and their portfolio companies, and as lead outside counsel on technology transactions, intellectual property, privacy and data security, CIPP/US, GDPR DPO, and Metaverse law.

Mike provides advice and guidance with respect to the protection of trade secrets and other confidential business information, drafts and reviews confidentiality, non-competition, and non-circumvention agreements, and performs due diligence with respect to trade secret and confidentiality issues in the context of technology deals and M&A transactions.

He negotiates, closes and manages risks associated with complex, high-value, intellectual property and technology transactions and matters including:

  • Systems implementation deals (including multi-site installed and cloud ERP, CRM, VOIP and ECM implementation transactions), strategic alliances, eCommerce, development, reseller, professional services, service level, telecomm, network services, equipment purchases, support & maintenance, and managed security services;
  • Technology M&A (including substantial IT, FinTech, and data-centric deal practice), joint ventures and technology collaborations, and representation of VCs, PE funds, family offices, and their portfolio companies in capital formations, acquisitions, and divestitures including sophisticated due diligence and analysis, rep and warranty insurance issues, and risk allocation and mitigation;
  • Metaverse, DeFi, and Web 3.0 law, blockchain platforms, distributed computing and ledgers, smart contracts, digital signatures, electronic contracts, crypto, NFTs, DApps, and DAOs;
  • Life sciences technology transactions and M&A including pharmaceutical, biotech, medical devices, and agribusiness, collaboration, and license deals for major health systems, health product distributors and vendors (including EMR, EHR, RCM, and VOIP implementations);
  • Inbound and outbound IP, IT and technology procurement, licenses, technology transfers, SaaS, IaaS, PaaS, BPaas, and TaaS deals, and IP acquisitions and divestitures, joint ventures, and open source issues;
  • Global business process outsourcing transactions;
  • Global data security and privacy compliance under US, Canadian, and EU law (EU GDPR and ePrivacy, CCPA/CPRA and other state law, HIPAA/HITECH, Gramm Leach Blilely, COPPA, FTC Act and Red Flag rule compliance), PCI-DSS, ISO 27001, ITIL, COBIT, and NIST standards, and data classification, breach response, records retention and destruction, and policies/procedures; and
  • IoT and Industrial IoT (IIoT), 3D printing, and additive manufacturing.

Representative Experience

  • Served as outside counsel in connection with the completion of an agreement for the sale of Summa Health to HatCo. This represents one of the most significant healthcare system transactions in Ohio in recent years and one of the first in which a major health system has been sold to an affiliate of a private equity fund.
  • Represented a private equity buyer in its acquisition of a wholesale distributor of pipes, valves, and fittings.
  • Completed a $67 million SAP implementation transaction for the entire Canadian business enterprise of an American global manufacturer and marketer of consumer and professional products.

  • Represent a nationally known digital architecture firm that has developed a unique cutting-edge technology applicable to creating spaces in the metaverse. 
  • Represent one of the pre-eminent internationally known technology companies in the field of virtual reality and augmented reality that is developing consumer technologies that will be instrumental to engaging in social networking and business transactions in the metaverse.
  • Represent one of the leading blockchain development companies in the United States with blockchain based applications that will be essential to connecting the physical world with the virtual world. 
  • Represented a major US private equity fund in connection with a multi-million dollar enterprise-wide SaaS subscription services agreement with salesforce.com.

  • Handled transactions on behalf of clients with national and international hardware, software, systems and medical device/life sciences companies.
  • Represented one of the largest manufacturers in the United States in connection with a $65 million global business process outsourcing transaction involving operations in the United States, Europe, South America, and Asia.

  • We serve as lead outside intellectual property and technology transactions counsel including the management and prosecution of the company’s extensive patent portfolio, and the negotiation and documentation of significant IP development, licensing and commercialization agreements.  In connection with this, we recently completed a significant transaction with Flow Pharma, a major US pharmaceutical company located in San Francisco, California.

  • Intellectual Property
  • Technology Transactions
  • Biotechnology
  • Chemical Industry
  • Copyrights and Creative Content
  • E-Commerce
  • Medical Devices
  • Patents
  • Trademarks
  • Private Equity
  • Global Transactions
  • Corporate & Securities
  • Data Privacy & Cybersecurity
  • Intellectual Property Litigation
  • Fair Use
  • IP & IT Mediation Services
  • IT Procurement
  • Rights of Publicity and Product Endorsement
  • Social Media
  • FINTECH & Payments
  • Metaverse/Web 3.0, Blockchain & Smart Contracts
  • Patent Prosecution
  • Additive Manufacturing-3D Printing
  • Artificial Intelligence (AI)
  • University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, 1991, J.D.
  • Northwestern University, 1986, B.A.
  • Ohio
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio
  • Certified Information Privacy Professional/United States (CIPP/US)
  • Listed, Chambers USA Leading Lawyers, Intellectual Property, 2022-2024
  • Listed, Crain’s Cleveland Business "Notables in Law" (2022)
  • AV Rated, Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review
  • Listed, The Best Lawyers in America®: Information Technology (2007-2025), Technology Law (2023-2025), IT Outsourcing Law (2023-2025), Data Security and Privacy Law (2023-2025)
  • Listed, Ohio Super Lawyers (2006)
  • Listed, CrainTech's "Who's Who in Technology" (2002-2006)
  • Recipient, Crain's Cleveland Business "40 Under Forty" Award (1999)
  • Member, Jewish Federation of Cleveland
    • Committee Member, Technology Committee
    • Committee Member, Security Committee
    • Committee Member, Overseas Connection Committee
      • Chair, OCC STEM Education Subcommittee
    • Co-Chair, Yom Ha'atzmaut Celebration Event (2020-2021)
  • Member, Board of Trustees, Friendship Circle of Cleveland
  • Member, Digital and Technology Advisory Committee, Cleveland Museum of Art
  • Member and Co-Chair, Legal Node - Legislation Subcommittee, Blockland Cleveland
  • Member, Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association
  • Member, American Bar Association
    • Member, Committee on Law and Commerce in Cyberspace, Business Law Section
    • Member, Science and Technology Law Section
  • Member, Licensing Executives Society
  • Member, Leadership Cleveland (Class of 2010)
  • Former Member, Board of Trustees, Providence House
  • Former Member, Board of Trustees, Beachwood Schools Foundation
  • Former Member, Host Committee - 2019 Shout Out!, Cleveland Rape Crisis Center
  • Former Board Member, IP Advisory Council, University of Akron Law School
  • Former Adjunct Professor, Case Western Reserve University Law School
  • Former Member, Anti-Defamation League National Commission
    • Former Member, Board of Trustees - Ohio Region

Highlights

Articles and Presentations
April 11, 2025
Cybersecurity and Privacy Protection Conference | Michael D. Stovsky
January 16, 2025
Federal Net Neutrality Reinstatement Denied by Court of Appeals; State-Level Laws Remain in Place
December 12, 2024
DOJ Proposes Rules Limiting Transfer of Sensitive Data to Countries and Individuals

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News
November 22, 2024
Benesch Partner Michael Stovsky Quoted in Los Angeles Times Article
September 6, 2024
Benesch Advises Client Rotunda Capital Partners on Strategic Investment in Lehman Pipe and Supply, Inc.
August 15, 2024
132 Benesch Attorneys Recognized in 2025 Best Lawyers® Rankings

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