Shelley R. Gilliss, Ph.D.

612.349.8401

Chief Talent Officer and Chief Administrative Officer

SGilliss@RobinsKaplan.com
612.349.8401

Minneapolis

Experience

Dr. Gilliss leads diverse, cross-disciplinary teams that complement Robins Kaplan’s litigation services. Her teams are experts in ediscovery, business intelligence, and include specialized consultants who provide expertise in science and technology, as well as finance, accounting and economics.

Dr. Gilliss holds a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering, and a Bachelor of Chemical Engineering with a minor in Chemistry. She possesses hands-on experience in semiconductor processing and its associated characterization techniques. Dr. Gilliss’s research experience includes thin-film deposition techniques, in particular pulsed-laser deposition. During graduate school, her research required extensive nano-scale characterization, resulting in Dr. Gilliss's proficiency in: transmission-electron microscopy; electron-energy loss spectroscopy; scanning-electron microscopy; energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy; and atomic-force microscopy to name a few.

During her time at Seagate, Dr. Gilliss characterized the magnetostrictive properties of thin films and used focused-ion beam techniques in combination with transmission-electron microscopy to characterize a variety of hard-drive components.

Dr. Gilliss’s Ph.D. thesis focused on glass/ceramic surfaces and interfaces. Her analysis of the valence state of the Cerium-oxide surface contributed to the fundamental understanding of the chemical-mechanical polishing mechanism.

Other Experience

Session Chair, XVIth International Symposium on the Reactivity of Solids (June 2007)
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Participant in the ShaRe Program—a government funded collaborative research program (2002-2004)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, visiting user of the National Center for Electron Microscopy (2002-2004)
3M, Abrasives Division Intern (Summer 2000 and 2001)
Seagate Technology, Intern (Summer 1999)
U.S. Senator Kent Conrad, Intern (1994)

Named to the “Minnesota 500 List,” Greenspring (2020)
Microscopy Society of America Presidential Student Award (2003)
U.S. Delegate to Meeting of Nobel Laureates in Lindau, (Germany) (2002)
Roland B. Snow Award, American Ceramic Society (2002)
National Science Foundation Dissertation Enhancement Award for International Travel (2002)
Arizona State University Scholarship for ASU High-Resolution Electron Microscopy Winter School (2002)
Gordon Research Conference Scholarship presented by Dupont (2001)
MicroBeam Analysis Society Distinguished Scholar Award (2001)
Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award, Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science (2000)
Gordon Research Conference Scholarship presented by the National Science Foundation (2000)

MentorNet, Mentor

Bar Admissions

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

Education

University of Minnesota, Ph.D., Materials Science and Engineering (2004)
University of Oxford, Visiting Academic, Department of Materials Science (2002-2004)
University of Minnesota, B.Ch.E (1999)

Professional Associations

American Intellectual Property Law Association
Minnesota Intellectual Property Law Association

Attorney at Law Magazine, "Robins Kaplan: Placing Tech at the Forefront of Law," (September 3, 2021)

Three Strategic Pillars of Patent Search: A Roundtable Discussion
Panelist, Relativity Fest (October 4, 2021)
Non-Traditional Careers
CEMS Virtual Alumni Panel (March 24, 2021)
A Patent Primer for Engineers Lessons through the Lens of Litigation
Digital Technology Center Seminar, University of Minnesota (April 8, 2019)