Alyssa Gaffen is an associate at Aitken Klee LLP, practicing in all areas of intellectual property and administrative law.
Among other experience, Alyssa has advised the Government of Canada on IP-related judicial reviews, counselled businesses about IP licensing and regulatory issues, and participated in various litigation files at the Ontario Superior Court and Federal Court. She also clerked at the Federal Court in 2019-2020, where she contributed to the first full trial under the Patented Medicines (Notice of Compliance) Regulations (filgrastim), the transition from Dunsmuir to Vavilov, and the initial pandemic protocols.
Alyssa earned law degrees in both Canada and the United States after completing the Dual JD/JD program between the University of Ottawa and Michigan State University College of Law. While at uOttawa, Alyssa honed her written advocacy skills as a Research Fellow for the Open African Innovation Research Network, a Writing Academy Leader, and a Dean’s Research and Writing Fellow. While at MSU Law, Alyssa successfully represented tenants’ rights with the Housing Law Clinic and educated students with the Great Lakes First Amendment Clinic.
Education and Qualifications
- Licensee (Inactive), State Bar of California (2022)
- Licensee, Law Society of Ontario (2019)
- Juris Doctor, Michigan State University College of Law, summa cum laude (2018)
- Juris Doctor, University of Ottawa, cum laude (2018)
- Honours Bachelor of Social Science (International Studies and Modern Languages, Spanish), University of Ottawa, magna cum laude (2014)
Publications
- Alyssa Gaffen, “Refining the Saccharin Doctrine: A Call for Clarity and Predictability in Canada’s Extraterritorial Patent Law”, (2020) 32:3 Intell Prop J 291
- Jeremy de Beer and Alyssa Gaffen, “Intellectual Property Rights in the Recreational Cannabis Market: Craft or Commodity?” (2017) 50 UBC L Rev 621