From initial assessment and strategy through trial and appeal, our lawyers will fiercely represent your interests in intellectual property litigation. We combine experience, efficiencies and economics to address your challenges in areas of trademark and trade dress, copyright, patent and trade secret litigation.

Areas of concentration include:

• Complex IP litigation
• Post grant review (PTAB)
• International Trade Commission (ITC); alternative dispute resolution

Trademark and Trade Dress Litigation

Your trademarks are valuable and should be protected. We represent clients’ interests involving registered and common law trademarks, service marks, trade names and trade dress issues. Industries we have represented include automotive, food and beverage, restaurant/food services, franchise, liquor, computer chip, computer software, motor fuel, health care, consumer goods, medical and dental devices, banking, religious organizations and others.

The Lanham Act, trademark and unfair competition-based claims we have handled also involve issues of:

• Dilution
• False advertising, description or designation of origin
• Franchising or business opportunity statutes
• Right of publicity
• State statutory and/or common law unfair competition or passing off provisions
• Statutes of special application and personal name statutes (e.g., names of unions, eleemosynary organizations, wineries, dairy industry, etc.)
• Trade disparagement or trade libel
• Unfair competition
• Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act
• Violations of various state Unfair Business Practices Acts

Copyright Litigation

Whether you are the holder of the copyright or believe a copyright needs to be challenged, we can help. We have represented clients with copyright claims in creative endeavors including:

• Musical works (musical composition, musical compilation, sampling claims)
• Literary works (books, educational materials, advertisement and promotional materials, business forms, engineering drawings)
• Sculptural arts (jewelry, toys)
• Software
• Graphics, artwork, computer games, casino games

We have been involved in sophisticated damages claims and analysis under the copyright statute and have handled claims involving the integrity of copyright management information, including statutory liability for removal and liability for replacement of copyright management information. Together with our Communications & Media attorneys, our team is skilled at navigating fair use and First Amendment issues that often accompany copyright claims.

Patent Litigation

Patent litigation can be highly technical, and you need a team that knows how to approach the technology or product at issue and craft a winning litigation strategy. We have handled matters involving apparatus and method claims, design patent claims, claims for direct and indirect infringement, and a wide range of invalidity defenses and damages between competitors in forums across the country. The technology involved in the matters we have handled includes:

• Medical devices
• Dental tools
• Medical simulation technology
• Automated food processing and food science technology
• Automotive industry technology (hybrid motor technology, design patents for automotive replacement parts, automotive cameras and video monitoring devices)
• Telecommunications, utilities and cellphones
• Software and internet technology
• Consumer goods
• Pre-paid and gift card technology
• Textile/fabric
• Manufacturing, Automation, industrial equipment and electro-mechanical design
• Nutritional supplements
• Electronic/electrical
• Mechanical, heavy equipment and robotics
• Petroleum exploration/production systems

Trade Secret Litigation

Trade secrets – some of your business’s most valuable competitive assets – are often under siege. We have handled trade secret litigation in federal and state courts involving disputes with employees, complex matters involving competitors, and issues with joint development agreements, supplier vendor relationships, and dissolved and dissolving business arrangements and various other trade secret misappropriation matters.

The technology and proprietary information involved in the trade secret matters we have handled include:

• Hybrid motor technology
• Stator technology
• Manufacturing equipment and processes
• Chemical formulas for flavors and fragrances in the food and beverage industry
• Chemical formulas in the paint defoamer industry
• Proprietary supplier and customer lists and information from the tool, knife sharpening, and automotive industries
• Proprietary software and data

These claims often involve access to/use of computers, the Internet and other technology and may trigger civil liability under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.

Alternative Dispute Resolution

Mediation and arbitration are often a preferred course of action for disputes involving intellectual property. Adding to this trend is the proactive inclusion of arbitration or mediation clauses in contracts, licenses and settlement agreements. As skilled negotiators, our IP lawyers can walk with you through the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) process and help ensure your interests are represented and your work is protected. We have handled mediations and arbitrations for clients in a variety of forums and have experience in many courts at the district level, as well as at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Litigation Strategy and Counseling

Litigation is often part of a business strategy, and consideration of your intellectual property is critical — it might be the one thing standing between you and your competition. We can provide valuable counsel as you consider the role intellectual property can play and the leverage it may bring to a business dispute. Our team will assist you with an initial case assessment and strategy, provide a second opinion and review of pending matters, and assist with mock jury and other case theme and theory strategies. We also proactively advise our clients regarding procuring intellectual property rights from both an offensive and a defensive posture.

For those considering or pursuing litigation funding, our team can also assist with case assessment and strategy, provide a second opinion, and/or assistance with presenting matters to litigation funders.