Experience

UC Regents v. QD Vision

Represented the Regents of the University of California against QD Vision for infringement of patents relating to nanocrystal technology in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. 

BladeRoom v. Facebook and Emerson

After a five-week jury trial before the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, our team won for UK-based BladeRoom a $30 million verdict against global manufacturing giant Emerson for willful and malicious misappropriation of trade secrets and breach of a non-disclosure agreement relating to BladeRoom’s revolutionary new methodology for constructing warehouse-sized data centers. The Daily Journal named this one of the “Top Verdicts” in California in 2018. The Court subsequently awarded BladeRoom an additional $30 million in exemplary damages and $17 million in prejudgment interest, for a total judgement exceeding $77 million. Our client settled with Facebook after the first week of trial.

Bench Trial Defense Verdict in Napa County

After a week-long bench trial in Napa County Superior Court, our team won a complete defense verdict on behalf of one of the largest wine grape growers in Napa County, whose family businesses and trusts had been joined to a marital dissolution proceeding. The opponent had sought damages in the millions of dollars and equitable relief, but our client prevailed on all claims. The court awarded our client $75,000 in sanctions for the opponent’s unreasonable litigation conduct.

Confidential AAA Arbitration

After a three-week arbitration hearing, our trial team won a $4 million-plus arbitration award on behalf of a small technology startup against a multinational corporation for breach of a nanotechnology development agreement.

SoftView v. Dell

Defended Dell against software patent infringement claims brought by SoftView against Dell’s Android phones and tablets in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware. The case was dismissed after all of SoftView’s asserted claims were found unpatentable in inter partes review.

Goodson v. Titeflex Corp.

In response to patent litigation against Titeflex, we defended the district court litigation and successfully obtained a stay based on two IPR petitions. We prevailed on all claims in both IPRs, and the PTAB’s decision cancelling all of the challenged claims was summarily affirmed by the Federal Circuit.

Viacom International, Inc. et al. v. YouTube, inc. et al.

We filed an amicus brief on behalf of several national consumer groups asking the Second Circuit to affirm the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of YouTube and Google against the plaintiffs’ claims of copyright infringement based on the DMCA “safe harbors.”

BioMarin v. Shionogi

Represented Shionogi against claims brought by BioMarin in San Francisco Superior Court for breach of a pharmaceutical license agreement.

Round Rock Research v. Dell Inc.

Defended Dell in the U.S. District Courts for the Eastern District of Texas and the District of Delaware against allegations that its products infringed 20 patents across a wide range of technologies involving DRAM, server management and monitoring, and BIOS.

Soladigm (View) v. Tarng

Represented Soladigm (now View, Inc.) against former consultant for breach of a consulting and nondisclosure agreement relating to electrochromic glass technology in United States District Court for the Northern District of California. The case settled favorably, with the court subsequently enforcing the settlement agreement over the objection of the consultant who wanted to unwind the agreement.

Firm Highlights

Publication

Employment Law Update for Nonprofits With Holly Sutton

Welcome to  EO Radio Show - Your Nonprofit Legal Resource . Charities, foundations, and their founders often request help addressing employment practices and compliance questions. In this episode, host Cynthia Rowland is joined by Holly...

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News

JPMorgan Chase Accuses TransUnion of Stealing 'Trade Secrets'

Intellectual property practice chair Eugene Mar provided expert commentary to American Banker for the article "JPMorgan Chase Accuses TransUnion of Stealing 'Trade Secrets'." In the article, he said: "By filing this as a trade...

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News

Scraping Battles: Meta Loses Legal Effort to Halt Harvesting of Personal Profiles

Alex Reese spoke to Matt Fleischer-Black of  Cybersecurity Law Report about the Meta v. Bright Data decision and its impact on U.S. scraping case law. Read the article here (paywall or trial).

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Publication

Nonprofit Quick Tip: State Filings in North Carolina and South Carolina

Welcome to  EO Radio Show - Your Nonprofit Legal Resource . Episode 75 is the tenth in a series of Quick Tip episodes focusing on the details of state registration of nonprofit corporations. With...

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Publication

Corporate Transparency Act: A Guide on Beneficial Ownership for Nonprofit Executives

The Corporate Transparency Act, enacted as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, represents a significant shift in regulatory requirements for entities across the United States. This act, set to...

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Publication

Corporate Transparency Act: State of the Law and Beneficial Ownership Reporting Requirements

Key Points: Despite ongoing legal challenges, the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) generally remains in effect and enforceable. Clients should continue to abide by its regulations. Initial reports for entities formed in 2024 are due within...

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News

North Coast Industry Insiders Weigh In on Why California Cannabis Tax Revenue Slipped in 2023

Jeff Hamilton spoke to Susan Wood with the North Bay Business Journal for the article "North Coast Industry Insiders Weigh In on Why California Cannabis Tax Revenue Slipped in 2023." Read the article with Jeff's...

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News

Farella Announces 2024 Leadership Council on Legal Diversity Pathfinders: Taylor Rottjakob and John Ugai

Farella Braun + Martel is proud to announce that senior associates  Taylor E. Rottjakob and John M. Ugai have been named 2024 Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD) Pathfinders. Pathfinders have been identified as...

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News

Farella Braun + Martel Earns San Francisco Green Business Recertification

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Publication

Insurance Market Crushes Wineries and Wine Country Homeowners

We keep hearing about how difficult it is for winery and vineyard owners to get property insurance these days, both for their homes and their wine businesses in California’s wildfire-prone areas. Those who have...

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