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Practice/Industry Group Overview
Gardere Intellectual Property attorneys focus on patent, trademark, copyright, trade secret and unfair competition law and the antitrust aspects of intellectual property law, with significant expertise in trademark and patent prosecution, licensing and related intellectual property litigation. Our clients range from individual inventors, artists and authors, to universities and large multi-national corporations. Almost all of the Intellectual Property attorneys have technical backgrounds in areas such as chemistry; civil, electrical, chemical and mechanical engineering; cell and molecular biology; immunology; bioinformatics; biophysics; computer science; and physics.
Patent, Trademark and Copyright Protection
Patent Protection
Gardere’s Intellectual Property Team has significant experience in both domestic and foreign patent preparation, prosecution and enforcement. The team utilizes strategic patent prosecution to increase the likelihood of securing commercially meaningful patent protection for our clients. Gardere has significant experience in the building of patent portfolios and the commercialization of patented inventions by both small and large companies as well as academic institutions.
Copyright Protection
The intellectual property protection available through copyright law is often unappreciated. Gardere’s attorneys are experienced in obtaining and enforcing protection not only for those works traditionally associated with copyright, such as books, motion pictures and music, but also for original works in such diverse areas as architectural designs and structures, semiconductor masks and computer software, to just name a few. This powerful tool may be used in combination with, and in supplementation to, patents and trademarks to provide a comprehensive network of protections.
Trademark Protection and Trade Secret Maintenance
Gardere serves as primary trademark counsel for many national clients, including Beckett Corporation, Daisy Brand, Essilor International, Heritage Coin, Highland Homes, James Hardie, Jani-King, Lennar Corporation, NCI Building Products, Overhead Door Corporation, Texas Health Resources, Tucker Rocky Co., Shasta Beverages, Wyndham Worldwide, Inc., and Zee TV.
The IP team manages our client’s trademark assets by:
- Early involvement, typically with the client’s marketing department, in the development of the mark to ensure that marketing dollars and personnel time are focused on creating strong and protectable marks.
- Registration and maintenance of the marks through a state-of-the-art docketing system, and then counseling the client on proper usage of the mark.
- Monitoring of potential infringements utilizing watch services and in-house information services.
- Policing the mark through cease-and-desists and litigation to maintain goodwill and value.
International Intellectual Property
The IP team provides a range of business and trade-related advice for companies with particular emphasis on conducting business in foreign countries. We are experienced in licensing transactions, software development agreements and negotiation of complex joint ventures between major U.S. and foreign companies. Our experience in obtaining commercially meaningful patent protection in foreign countries is substantial. Working with multiple law firms in jurisdictions throughout the world, we primarily utilize the nationalization of international patent applications filed pursuant to the Patent Cooperation Treaty. Before proceeding with any legal work in foreign jurisdictions, we first obtain written estimates from our foreign associates to ensure costs are closely controlled. We utilize an IP fee estimator software system to verify and confirm patent fees around the world. This level of management provides cost effective results, while minimizing effort and inconvenience for our clients. As necessary, we utilize available mechanisms in foreign jurisdictions to enforce client’s patent rights. This may include both administrative and legal actions against infringers and counterfeiters in foreign jurisdictions as well as coordinating with foreign and U.S. customs enforcement programs. Attorneys and personnel at our firm have extensive capabilities to communicate in various languages, including Spanish, French, German, Italian, Russian, Dutch, Japanese, Hebrew, Vietnamese, Ukrainian, Polish, and Hungarian.
Intellectual Asset Analysis and Portfolio Management, Licensing and Consulting
In addition to traditional intellectual property counsel, our IP team also provides strategic business advice and consulting services to our clients regarding business opportunities utilizing their proprietary products and technologies. Many companies have intellectual property on file which may or may not have business revenue potential. Our team provides strategic advice and counsel as to whether IP assets should be pursued as a patent or license or filed away for the future. The team also prepares invention assignments, employee invention and trade secret agreements, and other business contracts with key intellectual property provisions.
Intellectual Property Litigation
Intellectual property rights are crucial to the success of any modern business. When it is necessary to protect your company’s rights through litigation, Gardere’s IP litigation team is ready. The Firm’s highly experienced patent litigators, many of whom have tried patent infringement cases to verdict, coordinate and supervise a team of patent attorneys knowledgeable in the relevant technology and the nuances of patent law as well as veteran commercial litigators with significant experience in intellectual property cases.
The IP litigation team has represented start-ups to Fortune 500 companies in complex and bet-the-company patent infringement, copyright, trademark, trade secret and licensing cases. Our team has extensive experience representing patent owners and accused infringers in patent infringement cases across the country, and in particular, extensive experience in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, which is currently one of the most active Federal district court venues for patent infringement cases.
A representative list of the industries Gardere has represented in intellectual property litigation matters includes:
- Chemical
- Construction
- Biotechnology
- Computer Software
- Entertainment
- Manufacturing
- Medical Devices
- Petroleum
- Semiconductor
- Telecommunications
IP Infringement Litigation: Enforcement and Defense
Intellectual property litigation, especially regarding patents, is not only an effective tool for protecting valuable assets and investments made in research and development, it is also useful for generating revenue and achieving strategic business objectives. The calculated assertion and enforcement of patent rights often creates new or previously unappreciated business opportunities. Gardere IP attorneys have successfully enforced the intellectual property rights of many clients. These actions have resulted in the recovery of money damages, the creation of mutually beneficial strategic alliances between the parties to the lawsuit, and in some cases, both.
In addition to enforcement, Gardere lawyers have also successfully defended numerous companies that have been accused of violating the intellectual property rights of others. Utilizing thorough analysis of the issues as well as procedural maneuvers, including the reexamination of the patents-in-suit, Gardere has provided its clients with defenses that are both effective and efficient.
IP Litigation Venues: Eastern District of Texas
Gardere represents clients in courts throughout the country, and has particular familiarity with the Northern, Southern, and Eastern Districts of Texas, the latter district having one of the most active patent dockets of any court in the United States. The Eastern District’s popularity is primarily the result of the adoption of special rules for patent cases that establish deadlines for pretrial proceedings and result in trial of the case in about 19 months from filing of the complaint. With streamlined rules, many of the expensive discovery disputes typical in patent litigation may be avoided. In addition to the rapid schedule, the juries of the Eastern District have also awarded a number of large verdicts for the plaintiff. With Dallas as the closest major city to this district, Gardere attorneys are well positioned to serve clients’ needs in the Eastern District. In fact, the firm regularly represents both plaintiffs and defendants in the Eastern District, and also serves as Texas counsel to national clients who want experienced attorneys knowledgeable about the courts and judges in the Eastern District.
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