The Licensing Executives Society International presents a Gold Medal to Ocean Tomo Co-founder James E. Malackowski.
SINGAPORE and JERICHO, N.Y., April 28, 2025 /CNW/ -- J.S. Held announces that the Licensing Executives Society International (LES) has recognized intellectual property expert James E. Malackowski with its highest honor in the business of intellectual property – the LES Gold Medal. Mr. Malackowski was presented with the LES Gold Medal for his exceptional contribution to LESI and the licensing profession during the 2025 LES International Annual Conference in Singapore. He is only the 31st recipient of the LES Gold Medal, first awarded in 1971.
Notably, Mr. Malackowski joins only six others who have received the LES Gold Medal and inclusion in the IP Hall of Fame, a combination generally regarded as the ultimate recognition in the IP services industry. Mr. Malackowski was inducted as the 87th member of the IP Hall of Fame in 2022.
Others who have been similarly recognized with both such awards are Dudley B. Smith who was instrumental in forming the Licensing Executives Society; Heinz Goddar who is widely regarded as a global IP luminary dedicating his career to advancing the understanding of IP across academia, research, governmental, and commercial enterprises; Thierry Sueur who helped shape IP policy in his role at the International Chamber of Commerce as well as his work as chairman of the IP Committee of the French business federation MEDEF and vice chairman of the board of the French Patent Office; Francis Gurry as the former Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO); Randall R. Rader as former Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit; and, Hon. Pauline Newman who was appointed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in 1984.
Mr. Malackowski's latest award follows annual recognition since 2007 by leading industry publications. He has been included as one of the 'World's Leading IP Strategists'; listed among "50 Under 45" by IP Law & Business™; included in the National Law Journal's inaugural list of 50 Intellectual Property Trailblazers & Pioneers; named as one of "The Most Influential People in IP" by Managing Intellectual Property™; selected as 1 of 50 individuals, companies, and institutions that framed the first 50 issues of IAM Magazine; and noted as 1 of 60 leading global Economics Expert Witnesses by the same publication. In 2011, Mr. Malackowski was selected by the World Economic Forum as one of less than twenty members of the Network of Global Agenda Councils to focus on questions of IP policy. In 2013, he was inducted into the Chicago Area Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame by the Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Business Administration.
Mr. Malackowski is widely known for his work to develop a more efficient and transparent market for IP rights, including oversight for the Ocean Tomo 300® Patent Index, the first large-scale public auction for patents, the framework for the Intellectual Property Exchange International, and the current online market for patent sales—OceanTomoBidAsk.com. Mr. Malackowski has led the publication of the Ocean Tomo Intangible Asset Market Value® study for more than twenty years documenting the transition of global markets from tangible assets to intangible assets driven. Malackowski's firm continues to update this study, which has been downloaded and cited by third parties on more than 150,000 occasions.
Mr. Malackowski has focused his not-for-profit efforts with organizations leveraging science and innovation to benefit children and students, including those in less developed countries. He served for more than twenty years as a Trustee or Director of the National Inventors Hall of Fame, Inc., an organization providing summer enrichment programs for more than 100,000 students annually. For more than ten years, Mr. Malackowski served as a Director of Chicago's Stanley Manne Children's Research Institute, advancing the organization's agenda to measure and report the impact of its pediatric research.
Mr. Malackowski is a frequent speaker on emerging technology markets and related financial measures. He has addressed mass media audiences, including Bloomberg Morning Call, Bloomberg Evening Market Pulse, Bloomberg Final Word, CNBC Closing Bell, CNBC On the Money, CNBC Street Signs, CNBC World Wide Exchange, CBS News Radio, and Fox Business National Television, as well as other recognized news-based internet video channels.
As an inventor, Mr. Malackowski has twenty issued U.S. patents. He is a frequent instructor for graduate studies on IP management and markets and a Summa Cum Laude graduate of the University of Notre Dame, majoring in accountancy and philosophy. He is a Certified Licensing Professional and a Registered Certified Public Accountant in the State of Illinois.
About Ocean Tomo
Ocean Tomo provides Expert Opinion, Management Consulting, Advisory, and Specialty Technical Services focused on matters involving intellectual property (IP) and other intangible assets. Practice offerings address economic damage calculations and testimony; business licensing strategy and contract interpretation; patent-focused business intelligence; portfolio development strategy; litigation support; trade secret reasonable measures; asset and business valuation; strategy and risk management consulting; merger and acquisition advisory; debt and equity private placement; and IP brokerage.
About J.S. Held
J.S. Held is a global consulting firm that combines technical, scientific, financial, and strategic expertise to advise clients seeking to realize value and mitigate risk. Our professionals serve as trusted advisors to organizations facing high stakes matters demanding urgent attention, staunch integrity, proven experience, clear-cut analysis, and an understanding of both tangible and intangible assets. The firm provides a comprehensive suite of services, products, and data that enable clients to navigate complex, contentious, and often catastrophic situations.
More than 1,500 professionals serve organizations across six continents, including 84% of the Global 200 Law Firms, 75% of the Forbes Top 20 Insurance Companies (90% of the NAIC top 50 Property & Casualty Insurers), and 71% of the Fortune 100 Companies.
Verdantix, in their Green Quadrant: Enterprise Risk Management Consulting Services (2025) report, benchmarks 15 of the most prominent enterprise risk management (ERM) advisors, identifying global consulting firm J.S. Held among the leading companies based on capabilities and momentum.
J.S. Held, its affiliates and subsidiaries are not certified public accounting firm(s) and do not provide audit, attest, or any other public accounting services. J.S. Held, its affiliates and subsidiaries are not law firms and do not provide legal advice. Securities offered through PM Securities, LLC, d/b/a Phoenix IB, a part of J.S. Held, member FINRA/ SIPC, or Ocean Tomo Investment Group, LLC, a part of J.S. Held, member FINRA/ SIPC. All rights reserved.
Kristi L. Stathis | Global Public Relations | +1 786 833 4864 | [email protected]
SOURCE J.S. Held

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