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Mark Chandler

Retired | Executive Vice President

Chief Legal and Compliance Officer

Mark Chandler retired from his role as Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer of Cisco in May 2021. Chandler joined Cisco in 1996, when Cisco acquired StrataCom, Inc., where he had been general counsel. Prior to StrataCom, he served for six years as vice president of corporate development and general counsel for Maxtor Corporation, a Fortune 500 hard disk drive manufacturer. Chandler is a member of the Dean's Advisory Council for Stanford Law School, member of the Governing Council of the American Bar Association Center for Innovation, Board of Directors of Second Harvest of Silicon Valley, and the Board of Trustees for Belmont Hill School in Belmont, Mass. He previously served as a member of the Board of the Silicon Valley Law Foundation, member of the U.S. Department of Commerce Manufacturing Council, member and chairman of the City of Palo Alto Planning Commission, and member of the Palo Alto Utilities Advisory Commission. In spring 2016, he was a Lecturer in Law at Stanford Law School. In 2010, The National Law Journal named him one of the 40 Most Influential Lawyers of the Decade, and in 2013, American Lawyer numbered him among the Top 50 Big Law Innovators of the Last 50 Years. In 2018, he received the Burton Legends in Law Award. Chandler received a JD degree from Stanford Law School in 1981 and a BA degree in economics from Harvard College in 1978.

Articles

January 28, 2011

HIGH TECH POLICY

Standards Play a Vital Role in Fueling Innovation

3 min read

On Tuesday morning I was honored to represent Cisco in a roundtable discussion sponsored by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) about the role of the federal government in standards.  (Watch the webcast here.) Standards play a vital role in fueling innovation, promoting competition, lowering technology costs and accelerating market growth – particularly when […]

July 19, 2010

HIGH TECH POLICY

Cisco welcomes launch of first ever U.S. National IP Strategy

2 min read

In a fascinating profile of Thomas Edison that appeared recently in Time Magazine I was reminded once again of Edison’s importance to America’s historic strength in science, innovation and discovery. Edison’s goal was to create a “minor invention” every ten days and a “major invention” every six months.  His track record was astounding:  1,093 total […]

April 30, 2009

EXECUTIVE PLATFORM

America’s Continued Lead in Innovation Requires Fixes to Flaws in Patent System

3 min read

This week, in a remarkable speech to the National Academy of Sciences, President Obama laid out a bold vision for America to maintain its global lead in innovation. In his remarks, the President said, “Scientific innovation offers us a chance to achieve prosperity. It has offered us benefits that have improved our health and our […]