Speaker Profile — Elise Steegstra

Intellectual property, business protection and the future of ownership

Elise Steegstra is a commercial and intellectual property lawyer, Principal Lawyer at Yarra Lane Legal, and host of the Elise Explains IP podcast.

Elise helps business owners, founders, creatives and professional advisors understand how intellectual property affects the value, resilience and future of a business. Her work sits at the intersection of law, commercial strategy and emerging technology, with a particular focus on brand protection, ownership, succession and the rapidly changing impact of artificial intelligence.

Drawing on her work advising businesses and hosting the Elise Explains IP podcast, Elise uses real cases, familiar brands and practical business scenarios to help audiences understand where intellectual property risks arise—and what they can do about them.

Speaking topics

Elise can tailor presentations to suit business owners, professional advisors, industry groups, leadership teams, founders and creative communities.

Who Owns What You’re Building?

A practical introduction to the intellectual property hidden within almost every business.

• What a business may own—and what it may only assume it owns
• The risks created by founders, contractors, employees and related entities
• Practical steps to identify and protect valuable business assets

The Hidden IP Risks of Using AI in Business

AI makes content creation faster, but it also creates new questions about ownership, confidentiality and infringement.

• Whether AI-generated material can be protected
• The risks of uploading confidential information or client material
• Practical guardrails businesses can introduce now

Your Brand Is More Than a Logo

A practical guide to protecting the names, reputations and commercial identity businesses work hard to build.

• Common mistakes when selecting and launching a brand
• Why a company may be forced to rebrand even when it registered the business name
• How to build a brand that is easier to protect and commercialise

What Happens to the IP When a Business Owner Dies?

Intellectual property can survive its creator—but it may not reach the people intended to inherit or manage it.

• How copyright, trade marks, confidential information and digital assets are dealt with after death
• Why standard estate planning may overlook important business assets
• Practical steps for integrating IP, business succession and estate planning

Other topics

Elise can also speak about:

• Intellectual property in family businesses
• Copyright and content ownership
• Licensing creative work and business assets
• Protecting confidential information and know-how
• IP considerations when expanding overseas
• Managing intellectual property created by employees and contractors
• Legal and ethical risks in AI-assisted marketing
• Business continuity and succession planning
• Lessons from well-known intellectual property disputes

See Elise in action

Every presentation is tailored to the audience, event theme and desired practical outcomes.

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