Patexia Insight 207: Spotlight on Leading Section 337 ITC Attorneys in 2024
The interface of patent infringement disputes and international trade is an arena of practice that has catapulted several attorneys to the forefront. The Section 337 investigations of the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), in particular, have become a battleground where cutting-edge patent arguments are wielded with precision against alleged unfair import practices. The past few years have been no exception, witnessing extraordinary exploits by powerhouse attorneys who have continued to push the envelope in this high-stakes domain. Unveiling their mastery of complex technologies, the elasticity of patent law, and the interplay with international trade, they have adeptly handled the challenges Section 337 presents.
We released the comprehensive Patexia ITC Intelligence Report 2024 in late February, marking it as a milestone in our endeavor to throw light onto the complex world of ITC investigations. Our team tirelessly collected, analyzed, and interpreted data, culminating in an all-encompassing picture of the last six years of ITC investigations, from January 2018 to December 2023. The study analyzed yearly filings, types of investigations, and the time it takes for cases to conclude. It further extrapolates the data to provide insights into various technological sectors affected by Section 337.
We didn't stop at investigating the cases and dived deeper into them, aiming to place all the stakeholders under the microscope. This report provides an evaluation of the involved companies, top law firms, and leading attorneys, ranking them based on their activity and performance in Section 337 cases in 2024. In our previous insights, Patexia 204 and 206, we have highlighted top attorney lateral moves, as well as some of the best law firms. Today, we will spotlight the industry's standout attorneys, detailing their handling of ITC Section 337 investigations.
A total of 396 investigations were filed during our study period, 299 of which were violation investigations. Of these, 243 concluded before the publication of our report in February 2024. As seen above, nearly a third of the terminated violation investigations, precisely 76 (31.28%), reached a settlement before a Section 337 decision was made. This underlines the significance of negotiation and conflict resolution in halting potential trade violations.
Furthermore, 47 investigations, accounting for 19.34%, were classified under "multiple decisions". This category typically encompasses cases where different outcomes were observed among different parties implicated in the same investigation. The remaining cases were almost equally split between "no violation found" and "violation found", with their presence recorded in 40 (16.46%) and 39 (16.05%) investigations, respectively.
Withdrawal of complaints accounted for 34 instances (13.99%), signaling a not insignificant portion of cases where issues were resolved without a formal outcome. Seven investigations, making up 2.88% of the total, concluded via a consent order, indicating instances where parties expedited resolution by agreeing to certain terms.
Over the past six years, spanning from January 2018 to December 2023, a total of 4,656 attorneys have been on the front lines in the Section 337 ITC investigations. On average, each attorney participated in 2.5 cases. However, our analysis reveals that a select group of attorneys have managed significantly more cases than the average, highlighting their expertise and dedication in the field. To further expand on this analysis, we have developed a ranking methodology that uses various metrics related to the attorneys' involvement in cases. These include the number of cases handled, the number of patents involved, the outcome of the cases, and the strength of the side represented, among others. Through these key indicators, we have assessed and ranked the attorneys based on their activity and performance in three different categories: complainant, respondent, and overall.
The table below showcases some of the most exemplary attorneys who have earned themselves a mention in light of their high activity levels or distinguished performance. Being ranked among the top 250 means they belong to the top 5 percentile.
| Attorney | Law Firm | All Cases |
Ranked Category |
Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adam D. Swain | Alston & Bird | 35 | Overall Performance Rank | 1 |
| Jordan L. Coyle | White & Case | 29 | Respondent Activity Rank | 1 |
| Mitch Verboncoeur | McKool Smith | 12 | Complainant Performance Rank | 4 |
| Michael T. Renaud | Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C. | 16 | Complainant Activity Rank | 6 |
| Paul M. Bartkowski | Bartkowski PLLC | 28 | Overall Activity Rank | 8 |
| Deanna Tanner Okun | Polsinelli | 21 | Overall Performance Rank | 11 |
| John McGrath | Wolf, Greenfield & Sacks | 9 | Overall Performance Rank | 32 |
| Jessica C. Hill | Covington & Burling LLP | 18 | Overall Activity Rank | 46 |
| Philip Andrew Riley | Mei & Mark | 19 | Respondent Activity Rank | 48 |
| Vivian Sandoval | Dentons | 8 | Overall Performance Rank | 51 |
| Cyrus Frelinghuysen | Greenberg Traurig LLP | 11 | Overall Performance Rank | 69 |
| Aarti Shah | Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton | 11 | Complainant Performance Rank | 93 |
| Daniel E. Yonan | Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox | 13 | Respondent Activity Rank | 108 |
| Lyle Vander Schaaf | Crowell & Moring | 9 | Respondent Activity Rank | 256 |
The complete Section 337 ITC Intelligence Report is accompanied by an Excel sheet providing extensive metrics for the top 1,000 attorneys, law firms, and companies across all categories. This data includes scores, rankings, number of investigations, and other details such as their top three clients, firms, attorneys, and more. In the interest of providing a dynamic and well-rounded panorama of the legal landscape, we've also incorporated information on all lateral moves that have occurred since the publication of our last report. This also includes data on the firms that have grown and those that have downsized in terms of the number of ITC attorneys, thereby providing a snapshot of how the ecosystem has evolved over time.
Stay tuned in the coming weeks as we highlight the top lateral moves as detailed in our latest Trademark Intelligence Report. Stay connected for these exciting insights!