Stephen J. Cosentino

Partner

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KANSAS CITY OFFICE
1201 Walnut, Suite 2900
Kansas City, MO 64106

Recognitions Articles/Presentations overview

Steve is a member of the firm’s Intellectual Property and Technology Division and an associate member of the firm’s Corporate Finance Division. He provides document drafting, negotiation and general legal advice for a wide range of firm clients. Steve’s primary focus is on technology related transactions, with an emphasis on software licensing, application service provider transactions, outsourcing, online privacy, cloud computing and Internet related laws. Steve also has extensive experience in mergers and acquisitions, taking an active role on a number of corporate transactions and due diligence investigations.

Representative Experience

Served as lead technology counsel to represent the Unified Government and the Board of Public Utilities in their efforts to be selected by Google from more than 1,100 other municipal applicants to become the first U.S. city to have “Google Fiber” – providing internet connections of 1 gigabit per second to local homes, businesses and schools. Assisted partner Todd LaSala’s negotiation efforts and successfully completed a first-of-its-kind development agreement with Google, who will begin providing service to Kansas City in the spring of 2012.
Lead technology counsel for eHealthAlign and Kansas Health Information Network, two regional Health Information Exchanges.
Lead counsel for the University of Missouri System in the development of the Tiger Institute, a strategic alliance with Cerner Corporation dedicated to transforming health care delivery for Missourians.
Advised clients on a number of e-commerce related matters, including domain name disputes, corporate formation, internet sweepstakes, contest law, privacy law, e-mail and online regulations and various web site oriented policies and agreements
Represented clients in connection with mergers and acquisitions, including experience drafting and negotiating stock and asset purchase agreements and organizing and performing due diligence investigations
Represented data centers and customers in various collocation and cloud computing transactions.
Represented numerous companies in the acquisition of software licenses and technology development services, including compliance with open source licensing models and export control restrictions
Advised numerous software licensors through the drafting and negotiation of software license and development agreements and application service provider agreements
Advised clients on advertising and sweepstakes laws and compliance,including cutting-edge marketing techniques such as viral marketing campaigns, podcasting, and social networking
Drafted and negotiated patent and trademark licenses, distribution agreements, joint development agreements, and other agreements for technology transfer and commercialization
Guided clients through private and governmental technology investigations including open source audits, CARU and FTC compliance audits, and licensing audits
Advised clients and negotiated and restructured technology outsourcing transactions

Education

University of Missouri-Kansas City, J.D., 1997

University of Missouri-Columbia, B.A., Political Science, cum laude and with honors, 1994

Of Note

Steve has developed a comprehensive program to audit the data practices of companies transacting business on the Internet and provides complete services for e-commerce and software licensing transactions. Steve also has developed a comprehensive social networking compliance program for businesses. A two-year stint with the firm’s Phoenix office has enabled Steve to develop working relationships with a large number of the firm’s attorneys and clients.

Community Involvement

Junior Achievement Middle America Board of Directors
The Learning Group Board of Directors
University of Missouri–Kansas City Law Foundation Board of Trustees, President
Steering Committee for the Bob Downs Scholarship Fund benefiting students at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law
Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce Centurions Leadership Program, Communications Committee Co-Chair
Community Resource Network, Board of Directors, Secretary
ITKC Sponsorship Committee (2003), Program Speaker (2004)
Ingrams 40 Under 40 (2009)
Super Lawyers Rising Stars (2009)

Bar Admissions

Missouri, 1997
Kansas, 1998
Arizona, 1999

Professional Affiliations

American Bar Association
The Missouri Bar
Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association
- President's Award Recipient (2007)
- Young Lawyers Section (YLS) President’s Award Recipient (2004)
- KCMBA Counselor Publications Advisory Board, Vice Chair (2005-2007), Chair (2008-2009)
- YLS Public Service Committee
- YLS Public Relations Committee, Chair (1998)
- Nominating Committee (2002)
- YLS Special Projects Committee, Vice Chair (2003-2004)
- YLS Board of Directors (2003-2004)
- Computer Law Committee; Vice Chair (2004), Chair (2005)
- KCMBA Website Sub-Committee, Chair
Kansas Bar Association

Articles

Steve is a frequent contributor to the firm’s E-Biz Update, writing numerous articles on e-commerce topics, particularly in the area of electronic privacy. He has contributed to the firm’s corporate newsletter, writing articles on e-commerce related topics and internet contests. Steve has authored Law Review articles on securitized loan pools and recovery of medical expenses by children. He also writes for the KCMBA Counselor magazine.

Steve is a coauthor of tecknowlegyblog@squarespace.com
“If I Clicked It – The Famous Trials Website of Professor Doug Linder,” KC Counselor, March 2007
“Disaster Kansas City- Part I: An Historical Look at the 1981 Hyatt Regency Collapse,” KC Counselor July/August 2006
“Gizmorganization: Using PDA’s, Blackberry Devices and Microsoft Office to organize your practice,” KC Counselor, September 2005

Presentations

Steve speaks to various groups on e-commerce and Internet privacy related topics. He also conducted continuing legal education programs for the Institute for Paralegal Education in the areas of mergers and acquisitions, due diligence and legal research on the Internet. Steve has spoken before trade groups on intellectual property protection, copyright law, fair use, open source code and technology commercialization. He has presented the following programs:

"Flying the Company Flag Online – Blogging, Online Advertising and Privacy Trends," Information Governance: A Business Necessity, Stinson Morrison Hecker LLP, September 14, 2011
“Pete Best or Ringo Starr – Legal Issues in Rock Band Formation,” Volunteer Attorneys and Accountants for the Arts, Rock Band Boot Camp, September 10, 2011
"Opening Your Mouth in Cyberspace – Legal Trends in Blogging, Online Advertising and Privacy", KCMBA, Overland Park, Kan. and Kansas City, Mo. June 28, 2011 and June 30, 2011
"First to Market, First to Fund," thinkBIG Kansas City Premier Conference for Entrepreneurs, Investors and Startups, May 24, 2011
"Update on FTC Regulations in Online Marketing," Stinson Business Law Update, Kansas City, Mo., February 2011, and Wichita, Kans., April 2011
"What IP Lawyers Need to Know Before Drafting or Negotiating Technology Licensing Agreements in 2011," ExecSense Webinar, December 16, 2010
"Top Ten Reasons Otherwise Good Businesses Fail,” Think Big Kansas City, Premier Conference for Entrepreneurs, Investors and Startups, March 2010
“Social Media for the Advertising Executive,” American Advertising Federation, Topeka, Kan., April 2010
“Social Media Policies and Issues for the Corporate Counsel,” Stinson Corporate Tax CLE, February 2010
“Negotiating and Drafting License Agreements in Anticipation of Patent Validity Challenges,” KCMBA CLE, October 2009
“Anatomy of a Software System Licensing Transaction”, Kansas City, September 2009
“Copyright Law, the DMCA, Licensing and Commercialization and the Use of Open Source Code”, University of Kansas, 2008
“Intellectual Property 101”, Stinson Professional Development Program, April 20, 2007
“A Detailed Clinic on Software License Agreements,” Kansas City, October 16, 2007
“IP101," Stinson Practice Development Program, April 20, 2007
“Intellectual Property Outside of Patent Prosecution,” Kansas School of Law, April 2007
“Legal Aspects of Social Networking on the Internet,” ITKC, November 14, 2006
“Developments in the Law of the Internet,” Greater Kansas City Society of Health Care Attorneys, September 20, 2006
“Trade Secrets, Open Source, Technology Export and Electronics Records,” St Louis, 2006
“The Godmother of All Websites – Legal Aspects of Conducting Business on the Internet,” Association of Corporate Counsel, St. Louis, 2006
“Find it Free and Fast on the Net,” April 22, 2005
“Website Audits,” SMH Corporate Tax CLE, February 2007
“SPAM - Canned, Banned or Out of Hand,” ITKC, June 9, 2004
“Due Diligence in Corporate Transactions,” Stinson Professional Development Program, July 9, 2004
“Legal Aspects of Conducting Business on the Internet,” Omaha, Nebraska, 2004
“Update of the Law of Privacy in the Internet Era,” KCMBA, June 30, 2003
“The Law of the Internet in Kansas,” National Business Institute, Overland Park, Kansas, January 22, 2003
“Contracts and Copyrights,” KC-IABC, May 10, 2002
“Internet Privacy,” Small Business Development Center – Region VII Conference, April 2001
“Internet Privacy,” Financial Executives Institute, February 2001