Doug Sharrott

Doug SharrottDoug graduated from Cooper Union in 1983 with a Bachelor of Engineering, and from Polytechnic University (now NYU Tandon) in 1987 with a Master of Science, both in Electrical Engineering.

From 1983 to 1993, Doug worked as an electrical engineer at Fairchild-Weston, Hazeltine, and Grumman corporations. He designed anti-jam communication systems, combat friend-or-foe identification systems, and ballistic missile tracking systems for the Department of Defense.

From 1990 to 1994, Doug attended Brooklyn Law School at night. He was Notes and Comments editor of the Brooklyn Law Review. His 1992 law review article “Provider-Specific Quality-of-Care Data” helped pave the way for the public disclosure of medical outcome statistics. In 1994, Doug graduated with a Juris Doctor, magna cum laude.

From 1994 to 2024, Doug practiced law at the Fitzpatrick, Cella, Harper & Scinto and Venable law firms. He was recognized by Legal 500 as one of our country’s leading patent attorneys. Doug tried numerous cases before the federal courts, International Trade Commission and United States Patent and Trademark Office. He also worked with inventors to obtain and license patents. His clients included IBM, Hewlett Packard, Canon, Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, Becton Dickinson, Johnson Outdoors, Novartis and Bristol Myers Squibb. Besides litigation, Doug is well versed in alternate dispute resolution including mediation and arbitration.

Doug retired from the practice of law in 2024.

Doug served on the President’s Advisory Council of Brooklyn Law School and the Advisory Board of Nanotechnology Law and Review.

Doug and his wife Karen live in Orlando, Florida. They have four children and five grandchildren.

Role: Alumni Trustee
Elected to the Board: August 2025
Class Term: 2029
Term Limit: 2029

  • Founded by inventor, industrialist and philanthropist Peter Cooper in 1859, The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art offers education in art, architecture and engineering, as well as courses in the humanities and social sciences.

  • “My feelings, my desires, my hopes, embrace humanity throughout the world,” Peter Cooper proclaimed in a speech in 1853. He looked forward to a time when, “knowledge shall cover the earth as waters cover the great deep.”

  • From its beginnings, Cooper Union was a unique institution, dedicated to founder Peter Cooper's proposition that education is the key not only to personal prosperity but to civic virtue and harmony.

  • Peter Cooper wanted his graduates to acquire the technical mastery and entrepreneurial skills, enrich their intellects and spark their creativity, and develop a sense of social justice that would translate into action.