Kevin Hess specializes in high-stakes patent infringement and technology cases, with a particular focus on standard essential patents subject to FRAND or RAND obligations. Kevin has successfully represented both patentees and accused infringers in the United States District Court, the International Trade Commission, the Patent and Trial Appeal Board, and the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. He has helped win key trial victories for numerous clients.
Kevin excels in leading the technical side of his cases, and in distilling highly complex technical disputes into a narrative that judges, juries, and his clients can readily understand. Among Kevin’s recent representations are lawsuits on behalf of Ericsson against Apple in the Western District of Texas and an investigation at the International Trade Commission—each concerning patents alleged essential to the 4G LTE and 5G NR telecommunication standards. These disputes resulted in a favorable, multi-year, global patent license agreement. In the Eastern District of Texas, Kevin was a key member of the teams that obtained multiple “clean sweep” infringement jury verdicts for Optis Wireless on both cellular and video coding patents, and on the team that won an important FRAND verdict for Ericsson against HTC. Currently, Kevin heads the defensive technical teams in a group of related patent cases the Regents of the University of Minnesota brought against AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile in the District of Minnesota.
Since 2017, Super Lawyers magazine has consistently named Kevin a Texas “Rising Star.” More recently, Kevin was recognized as “One to Watch” by Best Lawyers in America, and among the “Top Most Active and Performing Attorneys Representing Complainants” by the Patexia ITC Intelligence Report.
Kevin earned his law degree from The University of Texas School of Law and his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering at The University of Notre Dame.
Updated July 2023
