Lee Palmateer
Of Counsel
Phone: (518) 220-1850 | Email: lpalmateer@iplawusa.com
Lee Palmateer is Of Counsel at Schmeiser Olsen and a seasoned intellectual property attorney. With a unique combination of engineering experience, litigation depth, and commercial transactional insight, he helps clients navigate the full lifecycle of innovation, from creation and registration to commercialization, enforcement, and dispute resolution.
Lee’s practice spans patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, technology transfer, licensing, and intellectual property litigation. His broad experience allows him to deliver practical legal strategies that align intellectual property protection with real-world business objectives and long-term commercial value.
Before entering legal practice, Lee worked as a mechanical engineer at General Electric’s Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory, where he gained firsthand experience in engineering design, technical problem-solving, and the innovation process. This technical foundation continues to shape his strategic and business-focused approach to intellectual property law.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Prior to joining Schmeiser Olsen, Lee founded the Lee Palmateer Law Office in Albany, New York, where he focused exclusively on intellectual property law and litigation.
Lee’s experience includes intellectual property litigation and enforcement in state and federal courts involving patents, trademarks, copyrights, unfair competition, and trade secret misappropriation. He has extensive experience in technology transfer and IP commercialization matters, including licensing agreements, joint development agreements, mergers and acquisitions, non-disclosure agreements, and intellectual property due diligence. He also regularly advises clients on trademark prosecution and enforcement, patentability and non-infringement opinions, copyright matters, and trade secret protection strategies.
EDUCATION
- J.D., Albany Law School, 1995
- B.S., Mechanical Engineering, Clarkson University, 1984
BAR ADMISSIONS
- State of New York
- State of Massachusetts
- United States Patent and Trademark Office
- U.S. Supreme Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of New York
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York
- U.S. District Court, Western District of New York
PROFESSIONAL LEADERSHIP
- Former Member, Clarkson University Business Leadership Council
- Former Advisory Council Member, Clarkson University Entrepreneurship Center
- Former Treasurer, Tech Valley Licensing Executive Society
- Former Member, New York State Bar Association Committee on Professional Discipline
PUBLIC SERVICE
Lee has also served in several elected public leadership roles in New York, including:
- Town Supervisor, Town of Athens
- Greene County Legislator
- School Board Member, Coxsackie-Athens Central School District