Christie Dudley

I am an accomplished and resourceful attorney with over thirty years of successful experience in legal and business.

Having started my career as an engineer, I know firsthand the challenges of having big ideas and the struggle to bring them to fruition. I am well-equipped to guide you through the essentials of starting up and growing your business, explaining complex concepts in a language that is easy to understand.

• Rates, Retainers and Additional Information
  Call for details

California

State Bar of California

ID Number: 347643

New York

New York State Office of Court Administration

ID Number: 5805783

Attorney

Christie Dudley, Attorney at Law

2023 - Current

Remote Associate

LAWCLERK - Freelance

2022 - Current

Law Clerk

Computerlaw Group LLP

2020 - 2022

Patent Specialist

HIPLegal LLP

2019 - 2020

Legal Technology Assistant

Various solo attorneys

2014 - 2017

Assisted clients with prior formation problems and performed technical software reviews for legal compliance.Special Accomplishments: Successful in first attempt for a 501(c)(3) tax status application late exception. Duties: With attorney supervision, drafted formation documents and contracts. Assisted clients with prior formation problems and performed technical software reviews for legal compliance.

Founder

Fork the Law

2013 - 2014

Privacy research assistant

Santa Clara University School of Law

2012 - 2013

Intern Hacker

H4RDW4RE

2010 - 2010

UNIX System Administrator, HPOV

Cubic Transportation Systems

2008 - 2010

Senior Networking Engineer

Various Consulting Companies

2006 - 2008

Senior Telecommunications Engineer

AG EdwardsAG Edwards

1999 - 2001

WAN administrator

Hussmann

1997 - 1999

University of Kansas

B.S. | Electrical Engineering

Digital Communications

Santa Clara University School of Law

J.D. (2014) | High Tech Law

2011 - 2014

Honors: High Tech Law Journal Emory Scholarship

Bar Association of San Francisco

Member

2023 - Current

Activities: Solo and Small Firms section member Intellectual Property section member Security and Privacy section member

Queen's Bench Bar Association

Member

2023 - Current

Activities: Amicus committee member

Privacy and the Car of the Future, DEF CON, Las Vegas, NV

August 2013

The Certified Information Privacy Professional - United States (CIPP/US)

International Association of Privacy Professionals

Q. Risk of trademark infringement using names from a Sega game in my novel.

July 14, 2025

A: Although you can be sued at any time by anybody for any reason or no reason at all, Japanese companies tend to be less litigious on derivative works in general as opposed to American animation companies. The best you can do is reduce the likelihood that they will pursue action.

The key is having no thematic connection or reference to the Sega character. Since the word "Chariot" is a dictionary word, it would be narrowly construed to encompass all the identity as created in game. So long as your character is nothing like the character in the game, you should not expect legal action.

Q. Amazon selling my book without consent; rights and Lanham Act issue?

July 14, 2025

A: Lanham Act is the enforcement measure for trademarks. Since I don't see any specific trademarks identified in your question, copyright would be the primary vehicle for enforcement.

You should have a copyright to the work. If you haven't registered the copyright, I would do that first. If you have, then the next issue is reading the terms that Amazon gave you when you signed up for the POD service. They may have granted themselves an unlimited license to the work. It is unreasonable for them to continue to profit from your work, but if you hadn't registered your work, then the only thing you can be awarded is to make them stop selling it, rather than money damages. Once you figure that out, you have a legitimate claim against them, although how much you can recover could be rather small. ... Read More

Q. Getting extorted by individuals from a Discord server demanding money and threatening exposure.

July 7, 2025

A: This is more likely than not to be a scam. There are several hallmarks of a scam that you have described here.

First, your relationship with them is only in an online forum. You do not know these people and they only know what you have told them about you. If you have done something unambiguously illegal, such as selling stolen credit cards or secret government documents, then you have reason to be concerned. Otherwise, you are likely being scammed.

Second, they are seeking money in Bitcoin or some other hard to trace currency. When people set out to scam someone, they want to be able to walk away with the money. It is way easier to walk away with bitcoin and legitimate businesses will give you the option of using more traditional options, such as taking credit cards.

Third, they are demanding money rather than taking action. If someone gives you an option to pay rather than face criminal action, then they are either extremely corrupt or trying to scam you. Even if they are corrupt, there's still the chance you could get caught up in the mess where you both get caught.

Because they are asking for money that is trivial to carry across international borders, there is likely little that can be done about the demands they are making. It's best not to engage in illicit activities such as selling stolen credit cards or government documents, especially on Discord. ... Read More