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Professionals 62 results
Capabilities 21 results
Practice Area
Winston’s Intellectual Property (IP) Practice is one of the most active and highly regarded in the United States per Chambers USA, Benchmark Litigation US, and Best Law Firms®, among other ranking organizations. Our team features some of the country’s best IP lawyers, attorneys with the technical abilities to litigate and try highly complex IP disputes, and technical lawyers who provide critical advisory services.
Practice Area
Our Patent Litigation Practice is one of the country’s most active and highly regarded. Our seasoned patent litigators bring extensive courtroom experience to every matter we handle. According to Lex Machina, we are among the top three national patent defense firms in the country for number of appearances and cases filed, and we also were the top national defense firm for number of patent trials in the last five years (2018–2022).
Industry
We help retail and luxury clients navigate challenges around the globe as they protect and expand their brands. We serve as trusted advisors and valued business partners, handling some of the industry’s highest-profile litigation, regulatory matters, and deals. Our track record of successes in both state and federal courts is a testament to our prowess in consumer fraud, product liability, and antitrust litigation and our commitment to excellence extends to our transactional representation, ensuring swift, seamless, smooth, and cost-efficient deals for our retail and luxury clients.
Experience 6 results
Experience
|January 27, 2026
Winston & Strawn secured a decisive victory for PayPal in an intellectual property dispute brought by Irish non-practicing entity Internet Payment Patents LTD (IPPL). Magistrate Judge Susan van Keulen of the Northern District of California entered final judgment in PayPal’s favor, finding all asserted patent claims ineligible under 35 U.S.C. § 101 and granting PayPal’s motion to dismiss without leave to amend.
Experience
|May 15, 2025
Winston Secures Federal Circuit Victory for Snap Axing Image-Presentation Patents on the Pleadings
Ask Sydney sued Snap along with four large tech companies in the Western District of Texas, Waco Division, asserting infringement of two related patents on methods of generating and presenting images to a user to determine the user’s interest. Working closely with Snap, Winston successfully moved to transfer the case to the Central District of California, then moved for judgment on the pleadings of patent-ineligibility under § 101 of the Patent Act. Following a hearing with multiple rounds of argument, the district court granted the motion, adopting Winston’s arguments that distinguished findings by the patent examiner during prosecution and by the Western District of Texas, which had denied § 101 motions brought by two other defendants. Ask Sydney appealed, but the Federal Circuit summarily affirmed three days after oral argument, handing Snap a decisive win invalidating all claims of both asserted patents. Eimeric Reig led the strategy and argued the appeal and motion hearing, working with Kathi Vidal and Kelly Hunsaker.
Experience
|April 30, 2025
In December 2022, Winston convinced Judge Albright of the W.D. Tex. to reverse his tentative construction and invalidate four patents based on means-plus-function indefiniteness at claim construction in the district court. Winston also persuaded Judge Albright to deny Fintiv’s motion for reconsideration the next month. Fintiv appealed to the Federal Circuit, which affirmed the district court in a precedential opinion in April 2025. Winston overcame a significant amount of sleight of hand from Fintiv, which continually shifted the purported structure of the “payment handler” term through claim construction, its motion for reconsideration, and appellate briefs, muddying the record. Ultimately the opinion clearly distinguished the factual record from that in Dyfan v. Target, curbing patentees abilities to argue that all code or applications are a “class of structures” and not indefinite under 112(f). The Federal Circuit affirmed four of the five patents Winston invalidated for PayPal, effectively foreclosing Fintiv’s ability to revive these patents for assertion. Winston also invalidated the fifth patent at the PTAB; Fintiv’s appeal of that Final Written Decision is pending.
Insights & News 261 results
In the Media
|March 25, 2026
|1 Min Read
Brett Johnson Discusses Federal Circuit’s PTAB Review Decisions with Law360
Winston & Strawn partner Brett Johnson was quoted in a Law360 article examining the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit’s recent decisions declining to review the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office director’s discretionary denials of inter partes review (IPR) and post-grant review (PGR) petitions. Companies have filed constitutional arguments at the Federal Circuit challenging the high and evolving threshold for having an inter partes or post-grant review instituted, which has led to an unprecedented level of denied petitions. The companies had hoped to fit into a narrow exception to the America Invents Act that allows appeals for unconstitutional “shenanigans,” but the Federal Circuit has rejected all of the mandamus petitions since November.
False Claims Act Playbook
|March 23, 2026
|10+ Min Read
The annual False Claims Act (FCA) recovery statistics issued by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) for Fiscal Year 2025 represent the highest single-year recovery in FCA history, underscoring that the FCA remains one of the government’s most effective tools for combating frauds involving federal funds. Winston attorneys outline expectations for FCA enforcement in 2026 and beyond based on an analysis of FY 2025 FCA activity and the priorities and goals of the current administration.
Global Trade & Foreign Policy Insights
|February 24, 2026
|7 Min Read
U.S. Supreme Court Invalidates President Trump’s Emergency Tariffs
On February 20, 2026, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) issued a landmark 6–3 decision sharply curtailing presidential authority to impose unilateral tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).
Other Results 14 results
Law Glossary
What Are the Patent Litigation Differences Between the BPCIA and Hatch-Waxman Act?
There are fundamental differences between the abbreviated approval processes to obtain FDA approval for biosimilars and generic drugs as those processes relate to patent litigation.
Location
Launched in 2013, Winston & Strawn’s Silicon Valley office is home to nationally recognized attorneys that draw clients from Fortune 500 companies, startups, and everything in between. Led by Kelly Hunsaker—who has deep roots in Silicon Valley spanning nearly three decades—the office draws from the firm’s deep bench strength and global network of resources to serve clients in a variety of industries, including the semiconductor, computer hardware and software, telecommunications, life sciences, and pharmaceutical sectors. The office’s intellectual property attorneys have litigated extensively in all the top national patent litigation venues, as well as before the International Trade Commission and the Patent Trial and Appeals Board of the USPTO.
Location
Founded in 2008, Winston & Strawn’s Charlotte, North Carolina office of 25+ lawyers, includes firm leaders such as Kobi Kennedy Brinson—represents many major national and international companies headquartered in the city. Our Charlotte office also provides legal services to all of the top ten financial services companies in the U.S., which aligns with Charlotte’s reputation as the second-largest banking center in the country.