Taft partner Derek Lavender has been named a Forty Under 40 honoree by the Indianapolis Business Journal. Honorees are selected based on their demonstration of leadership, initiative, and dedication in pursuing their careers. Lavender and other honorees were recognized at an awards event on April 21. 

Lavender is a registered patent attorney and practices in all areas of intellectual property law, with a focus on patent preparation/prosecution, international patent portfolio management, patent related opinion work, and patent portfolio due diligence. He has experience preparing and prosecuting patent applications in technologies such as medical devices, material science, electrical control systems, agricultural equipment, electro-pneumatic systems, electro-hydraulic systems, and transmission assemblies among others. Lavender earned his B.S. in mechanical engineering from Kettering University. He received his J.D. from Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law with a graduate certificate in Intellectual Property Law.