McKool Smith has established itself as a litigation force to be reckoned with – a reputation that continues today on the strength of its deep bench of trial lawyers that spans seven offices in the US (four in Texas, the state in which the firm saw its genesis). “McKool is a top-notch plaintiff’s and hedge fund litigation firm,” says one client. Another adds, “They are excellent across the board – analysis, technology, strategy and articulation.” A peer agrees, saying, “McKool is a real trial firm. Those people have trials in their DNA.” While its practitioners cover a broad spectrum of litigation practice areas, the firm is perhaps most celebrated for its intellectual property prowess, which has logged it several high-profile wins over the course of its history – and it continues to do so. “They bring a creative, aggressive litigation approach in the patent area,” says one client. Since 2007, the firm has represented WiLAN in securing settlement and licensing agreements with many of the world's leading technology providers.
Warren Lipschitz, a Dallas partner making his debut as a future star in this edition, secured an $85 million patent damages verdict on behalf of this client against Apple. The verdict was announced in January 2020, following a jury trial in the Southern District of California. The case was later remanded by the Federal Circuit for a new trial on damages. In March 2022, WiLAN announced that it had reached a confidential settlement with Apple resolving lawsuits in the US, Germany, and Canada. Also based in Dallas, Nicholas Mathews, along with Lipschitz, represented Ericsson in defense of a seven-patent assertion brought by IP Bridge. The case involved assertions concerning mobile communications and multicarrier communications. IP Bridge filed the case in June 2021. The case settled after the pretrial conference and shortly before the trial began. Dallas’s
Robert Manley represents plaintiffs and prospective class representatives who assert claims for breach of contract, tortious interference, and breach of fiduciary duty against USPI Holding Company. Plaintiffs allege that the defendants intentionally devalued stock options and shares granted to plaintiffs under USPI’s 2015 employee stock-incentive plan. The case settled on confidential terms. “Robert Manley is one of the best trial lawyers I know,” raves a peer. “He is a storyteller.” A client calls Manley “organized, cool under pressure, creative, aggressive, professional – he brings excellent legal pleadings and court presence.” Manley is also involved in a case led by Houston’s
Joshua Newcomer, in which the team defends various Zachry defendants in a suit filed in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Texas alleging fraudulent transfers, breaches of fiduciary duty, aiding and abetting breaches of fiduciary duty, unjust enrichment, and wrongful corporate dissolution. The plaintiff seeks more than $1 billion from the defendants based upon claims arising from a billion-dollar public-private toll road construction project in central Texas that suffered from significant alleged defects. Newcomer is applauded by a client for his “responsiveness, writing ability, sophisticated analysis, preparing witnesses, and understanding client goals, values and limitations.” Dallas’s
David Sochia is defending clients Xerox, Conduent and New Jersey Transit in a case involving alleged patent infringement, theft of trade secrets, breach of contract, interference with business relations, unfair competition, and unjust enrichment claims alleged by Bytemark. The case is pending in the Southern District of New York. A client calls Sochia “a great big-picture manager of cases, focusing on the overall goal, not just the immediate issues that arise over the course of litigation.”
Alan Whitehurst, in the DC office, is cheered by a client for “[having] an excellent grasp of the technology, the patent laws and litigation strategy. Plus, he is a great guy.” Another client raves, “[Alan brings] exceptional responsiveness and thorough analysis of case strengths and weaknesses. [He is] excellent [at] witness preparation and an excellent team member in a sprawling multiparty case.”
