Alaina van Horn (Past Speaker)

Alaina Van Horn is a Senior Attorney-Advisor with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in the Intellectual Property Rights Branch where she is involved in all aspects of intellectual property border enforcement.  In particular, Ms. Van Horn is responsible for training and advising officials at all U.S. ports of entry about the admissibility of imported merchandise that potentially infringes upon registered United States trademarks and/or copyrights.  She is also responsible for enforcing exclusion orders issued by the U.S. International Trade Commission, issuing advanced rulings and other administrative determinations relating to CBP’s enforcement of intellectual property rights.  

In addition responding to ruling requests and assisting with infringement determinations, Ms. Van Horn works on rulemaking and legislative initiatives that relate to CBP’s border enforcement of intellectual property.  Since joining CBP, Ms. has frequently spoken to domestic audiences, as well as foreign customs agencies, regarding border enforcement of intellectual property rights.  Prior to her time at CBP, Ms. Van Horn worked at the U.S. Department of Justice in the Natural Resources Section, assisting with the litigation of over one-hundred cases filed against the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs by sovereign Indian nations alleging mismanagement of their historic trust funds. 

Ms. Van Horn received an undergraduate degree from New York University and a Juris Doctor (JD) degree as well as a Master of Arts (MA) degree in philosophy from The Catholic University of America.  Ms. Van Horn recently completed the course work requirement for a Masters of Law (LLM) degree from George Washington University School of Law, with a concentration in international and comparative law.