Susan L. Heller

When Heller passes a rack of jeans in a clothing store, she can’t resist the urge to inspect the stitching on the back pockets. The instinct stems from her early career as an attorney, when she was involved in litigation related to the “denim wars” between Gap and Levi’s, she said.

“I cut my teeth on those fights early on,” she said. “Being a branding lawyer forever changes how you shop.”

Now, with three decades of experience, Heller specializes in the strategic management and monetization of big-name brands on the global stage. The co-managing shareholder of Greenberg Traurig’s Orange County office is chair of the firm’s global trademark & brand management group.

Working with Fortune 500 clients, Heller often helps companies build on the success of a popular brand — expanding key marks or protecting against third-party infringers. For corporate brands in the depths of a public relations crisis, she develops rebranding campaigns and damage-control strategies.

“Sometimes you can rehabilitate a brand with a very structured, focused attempt to rebrand that asset,” she said. “Sometimes you have to make the decision to jettison the brand, and to come up with a completely different name.”

Because of the increasingly important role that branding plays in a company’s success, marketing decisions are frequently made by C-Suite executives these days, she said.

“It’s more than just naming a product,” she said. “Deciding what you’re going to do with a brand beyond the immediate future is a big decision, and a lot of people need to weigh in because oftentimes that is tracking the direction the company wants to go as an entity.”

Heller added that the complex and evolving landscape of branding and trademark law requires an attorney willing to establish a deep connection with a company. Working “off the meter,” she often spends time educating herself on the issues and trends impacting a client’s particular industry.

The attorney also serves as co-chair of the firm’s Global Women’s Initiative, which involves programming aimed at empowering women and encouraging diversity in the legal profession. Elaborating on the importance of inclusion, Heller said that diversity of thought is crucial in cultivating a successful brand.

“When you’re branding, you need to be creative,” she said. “And creative brilliance comes out of people throwing things out there and feeding off each other.”

— Mark Armao