FinchMarkSM is the trademark and copyright practice of Finch and Associates, LLC, owned by Ruth Mae Finch, Esq. We are a family-run firm serving entrepreneurs, growing companies, and established brands across the U.S. and Canada.
Walter G. Finch, Esq., CPA, M.A. — founder of the practice.
Our roots
The practice traces back to Walter G. Finch, Esq., CPA, M.A. — One of 13 children, he was born in Baltimore, Maryland on January 25, 1918. The Baltimore native earned a high school diploma from Baltimore Polytechnic Institute and then proceeded to amass six college degrees, five on the graduate level, in the fields of engineering, law and business administration from Johns Hopkins, Temple and George Washington universities. In 1936 he became an Army engineer and WWII colonel who worked on the strategic development of the proximity fuse. After his army service he continued graduate studies while building an intellectual property practice. His high tech intellectual property cases ranged from gyroscope patents after the war through biotech tissue transplant patents shortly before his death in 1997. His daughter Ruth grew up in his practice and assisted him with trademark issues while attending law school.
Ruth Mae Finch with her father, Walter G. Finch, Esq.
Ruth Mae Finch, Esq.
Ruth Mae Finch was born in 1952 and grew up in Catonsville MD. While in law school, Ruth worked at her father's IP practice, focusing on trademark and copyright law. After passing the bar, she was sworn in as a Baltimore prosecuting attorney, where she served eleven years and earned the nickname “First Degree Finch” for tenacity in investigation and the courtroom.
Ruth then sharpened her IP skills with the IP specialty firm Stevens Davis Miller and Mosher (acquired by Dickinson Wright), representing clients such as Volkswagen, CareFirst Blue Cross Blue Shield, Steel Cloud, Schmidt's Bakery, and many others. When the firm closed its DC office in 2007, she continued at Dickinson Wright with her mentor Barth X. DeRosa, Esq. until 2009. She then reinvested in her private trademark and copyright practice, traded high-overhead offices for a more affordable home office, and has grown FinchMark in step with her clients ever since.
Ruth Mae Finch, Esq. and Marcos Ferrer, CBAP.
Marcos Sebastian Ferrer, CBAP®
Marcos Ferrer was born in Chicago in 1957 and grew up in California, Kentucky, New York, Washington, D.C., then moved to Puerto Rico at the age of seven, ending up in Knoxville High School in Illinois. He obtained a BA in Math from the University of Chicago then joined IBM in Chicago as a systems engineer before promotion to account representative. He entered private practice in 1990 as a business strategic and information systems consultant. After 16 years of multiple contract awards ((Mendes Worldwide, U.S. Dept. of Labor, Strayer College, IRS, Global Knowledge), Marcos was among the first Certified Business Analysis Professionals in the world (CBAP® 007 at IIBA.org (opens in new tab)®). After 10 years of consulting with government and private sector clients, Marcos joined Ruth's practice. Marcos adds strategic business, branding and information technology perspectives for clients who treat their marks as core business assets — not just legal paperwork.
Clients we've served
Tequila Mockingbird, Neo Dental, Schmidt's Bakery, Baby Goo Roo, Antietam Brewery, The Original Toy Company, Geneco, Wood Expressions, Good-L Inc., Kendama USA, International Nutrition — and many more entrepreneurs and brand owners who needed counsel that was both expert and accessible.
DBA
How we work
We've been doing business as Finch and Associates, LLC since 2001, and under the FinchMarkSM brand for over a decade — a name that started when a client referred us by it to a friend. We're tenacious about securing your natural trademark rights: correct usage, intent-to-use filings when needed, USPTO, state, and Canadian registration, and patient negotiation with registration bureaucracy on your behalf.
We're equally dogged about protecting the value you build: cease-and-desist letters, online and offline enforcement, licensing, confidentiality and IP sale agreements, USPTO proceedings, and long-term strategic planning.
Most of all, we are accessible. We talk like humans, we care about your business, and find effective strategies that suit your needs, timing, and resources.
