Fish & Richardson Named to NLJ's "2015 Intellectual Property Hot List" for Fourth Straight Year

BOSTON, MA--(Marketwired - Jun 3, 2015) - Fish & Richardson has been named to The National Law Journal's (NLJ) "2015 Intellectual Property Hot List" as one of 15 firms "that accomplish great things in the realm of intellectual property law." This is the fourth year that Fish has been named to the NLJ "IP Hot List," which the publication started in 2012.

In its profile of Fish, the NLJ noted that, "Fish & Richardson's deep expertise in intellectual property law means it can handle a client's patent dispute whether it lands in court or at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. That depth helps Fish know when to pursue creative strategies."

"We are honored to be named one of the best IP firms in the country for the fourth straight year in a row," said Ann Cathcart Chaplin, Litigation Practice Group Leader at Fish & Richardson. "This NLJ recognition confirms what our clients already know: there are few, if any, technologies we don't understand, litigation strategies we have not faced, or jurisdictions we haven't litigated in. That makes us extremely efficient and effective at protecting and maximizing the value of our clients' intellectual property."

The NLJ highlighted Fish's April 2014 "precedential U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit" win for medical device company Volcano Corp. in an important patent case over tiny guide wires used to take cardiac measurements. "The court held that St. Jude could not appeal the patent office's decision not to conduct an inter partes review, or an evaluation of the validity of a Volcano patent. In a standard appeal, the jurisdictional question would have been just one of the issues," said Fish principal Frank Scherkenbach. "It is a strategic decision to be made."

Inter partes review is an increasingly popular way to challenge an opponent's patent. "The court's decision effectively forecloses what would otherwise be a large number of appeals," added Scherkenbach.

The NLJ applauded Fish's April 2014 Federal Circuit win for client Chicago Board Options Exchange Inc. (CBOE) that CBOE did not infringe an International Securities Exchange Holdings Inc. patent for automated financial trading. According to NLJ, "International Securities claimed its damages would 'easily exceed' $400 million, or $1.2 billion if trebled for willful infringement." The NLJ also noted Fish's December 2014 win in Illinois federal court ruling that CBOE was entitled to attorney fees.

Fish & Richardson is a global patent, intellectual property (IP) litigation and commercial litigation law firm with more than 400 attorneys and technology specialists across the U.S. and Europe. Fish has been named the #1 patent litigation firm in the U.S. for 11 consecutive years. Fish has been winning cases worth billions in controversy -- often by making new law -- for the most innovative clients and influential industry leaders since 1878. For more information, visit www.fr.com.