Eckstein Hall
1215 West Michigan Street
MIlwaukee, WI 53233
United States
Please Join Us
April 16, 2026
5:00 to 6:00 p.m., lecture, immediately followed by a public reception.
1 CLE credit
The Hidden Curriculum: Promoting Inclusion in Invention and Innovation
Although talent is broadly distributed across the population, achievement in invention, innovation, and intellectual property is concentrated. What enables some to advance, beyond their peers, at companies, law firms, and law schools? This lecture will discuss evidence of the presence of a hidden curriculum in invention, innovation, and intellectual property, meaning the exposure, insights, know-how, and practices that have helped unlock potential both in intellectual property and in innovation careers. It will share ongoing work that aims to uncover this curriculum and describe the benefits of discussing it more broadly.
Colleen Chien is professor of law and co-director of the Center for Law & Technology at the University of California, Berkeley. Her teaching and research interests include innovation, intellectual property, and artificial intelligence, with a focus on how technology, data, and innovation can be harnessed to achieve their potential for social benefit. In addition to her academic appointments, she has served in positions in the federal government such as senior advisor and then senior consultant in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy during 2013-2015. Chien is a graduate of Berkeley Law and holds B.A. and B.S. degrees from Stanford University.
This annual lecture remembers the Honorable Helen Wilson Nies, who served as a judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit from 1982 until 1996 (chief judge 1990–1994).
