The work of the Harrisburg Regional Chamber & CREDC would not be possible without the support of our Board Members and Investors. Every month, get to know one of our CREDC Board Members or Investors in our “CREDC Board Monthly Spotlight” series. This month, get to know McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC Member Attorney and Co-Chair of Intellectual Property Group Shawn Leppo. McNees, a Chamber member since 1989, is a multidisciplinary law firm that has proudly served clients worldwide. The law firm leverages the collective knowledge and experience of their full bench of legal talent to provide clients with creative legal solutions from 11 locations in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maryland, and Washington, D.C. Read on to learn more about Shawn Leppo and why he serves on the CREDC board since 2017.

-Why do you support CREDC?
 ~ CREDC promotes regionalized economic development and fosters cooperation across political boundaries, both of which contributes to its meaningful impact on our community.

-Why did you become a board member?
 ~ People often think of economic development as new construction and other tangible things, but intellectual property and intangible assets are also an important part of creating a strong economic environment. I wanted to make sure that we are thinking about how we support and foster those aspects as well.

-What do you like most about being a board member?
 ~ I enjoy getting to see and appreciate first-hand the work that CREDC staff does to support economic development in our community.

-What do you think people should know about CREDC?
~ There’s a ton of public resources available to help expand your business – one phone call to CREDC is a worthwhile investment of time to see if there are ways the organization can assist. 

-What else would you like people to know about you? 
~ I am a patent attorney who works with international clients on all aspects of intellectual property law. While my focus is on patent matters, including patent prosecution, enforcement, licensing and risk avoidance strategies, I also am involved in portfolio planning and management; preparing noninfringement and invalidity opinions; structuring and negotiating patent, trade secret and copyright license agreements; and assisting with IP aspects of diligence in mergers and acquisitions.