Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox PLLC

Managing Partner: Michael B. Ray

Number of partners: 81

Total Number of lawyers: 167

Founded in 1978 and based in Washington, DC, Sterne Kessler is a premier law firm dedicated to intellectual property, focusing on the full range of IP services globally, including litigation, patent and trademark prosecution, IP strategy, post-grant proceedings, opinions, and transactional support.

The firm works with some of the most innovative clients in the world, including Fortune 500 companies, entrepreneurs, start-ups, inventors, venture capital firms, and universities. Whether prosecuting a patent or trademark, managing a worldwide portfolio, or litigating a bet-the-company case at trial, Sterne Kessler is committed to delivering practical solutions and excellent client service.

Patent Prosecution:

For over 45 years, Sterne Kessler has protected innovation, providing strategic counsel from idea conception and product development to commercialization, launch, and beyond. The firm obtains top-quality utility patents covering a broad range of technologies—from biotechnology and pharmaceuticals to electronics, industrial systems, and innovative materials. Sterne Kessler also develops effective, comprehensive IP programs to protect some of the most iconic products designs in the world across a diverse array of industries, including consumer products, food & beverage, medical devices, automotive, heavy equipment, manufacturing, and industrial products.

Intellectual Property Litigation:

In the last five years, Sterne Kessler has served as litigation counsel in more than 200 cases across more than two dozen jurisdictions in federal district court. The firm is one of the top five most active firms at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and among the top 10% of most active firms at the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC). The Sterne Kessler litigation team has experience across a range of IP cases and matters, including patent, trade secret, trademark, copyright, breach of contract, and licensing disputes. The firm is also particularly skilled at coordinating across multiple venues, representing clients in patent litigation in district court, before the ITC, and at the U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB), pivoting between venues to efficiently and favorably resolve disputes.

PTAB Trials:

Sterne Kessler's PTAB Trials team emerged as a leader at the inception of the PTAB, and continues to be a dominant force in the industry today. The firm has been counsel in more than 1,200 PTAB proceedings and counting, and its results are among the very best. Patexia consistently ranks the firm among the top 10 most active overall and the top 25 best performing firm overall in its PTAB Intelligence Report. The PTAB team finds creative solutions to win cases, using the wealth of institutional knowledge built from handling the third most PTAB cases of any firm, often outperforming the PTAB averages at institution and at final written decision. The practice is known for being able to combine technical depth and patent knowledge to deliver results for clients—with one of the most (if not the most) experienced and accomplished PTAB teams representing both petitioners and patent owners, the firm represents clients across many industry sectors, including electronics, automotive, biotechnology, consumer products, manufacturing, medical devices, software, and manufacturing, among many others.

Design Patents:

For nearly four decades, Sterne Kessler has been at the forefront of design patents, consistently delivering successful outcomes for clients in securing and defending their design rights.

Long before other law firms saw the value of design patents, the Sterne Kessler team was breaking new ground in the field and continues to be a market leader in design patent law today.The design patent rights it has obtained for clients have withstood challenges around the globe, and clients have been able to recover millions of dollars in damages and injunctions against future sales in litigation. The firm is consistently ranked one of the top three firms securing U.S. design patents for clients, and in 2024, it filed or directed the filing of approximately 5,000 applications globally.

International Trade Commission:

With one of the nation’s top ITC practices, Sterne Kessler offers unrivaled experience, comprehensive litigation strategy, and the legal and technical know-how to achieve the best possible results. In the last five years, Sterne Kessler has been one of the most active firms at the ITC. The team excels at handling the complexities of a Section 337 case due to a solid foundation of IP trial and technology experience, and a deep understanding of administrative law and the ITC’s unique rules and procedures.

Trade Secret Protection & Enforcement:

Sterne Kessler has decades of experience counseling clients on trade secret protection related to technology, in addition to litigating trade secret claims in U.S. state and federal courts as well as before the ITC. The multi-disciplinary team of trial litigators and patent attorneys with extensive technical backgrounds proactively helps clients maximize trade secret assets through tailored protection policies. They also enforce and defend against trade secret and unfair competition claims. Whether a client is investigating a trade secret matter or finds itself the subject of an investigation, the team is able to mobilize quickly to assess and develop a strategy to resolve the matter.

Trademark & Brand Protection:

Sterne Kessler works with clients at all stages of the trademark lifecycle, helping to create and protect robust portfolios, and craft proactive and effective strategies to enforce and defend trademark rights globally. Drawing from decades of experience advising world-renowned brands, the trademark team takes a business-focused approach to help clients drive maximum value from their trademark portfolios and protect against infringers and other threats to their businesses. The practice represents 400+ clients across various industries, including consumer products and electronics, fashion and luxury goods, food and beverage, internet and e-commerce, life sciences, technology, sports, entertainment and media, transportation, and medical devices.

Strategic IP Advice:

Sterne Kessler handles opinions related to freedom-to-operate, non-infringement, invalidity, patentability, registerability of trademarks, and enforceability of patents and trademarks. Opinions range from formal opinions of counsel, upon which clients have successfully relied at trial, to less formal letter opinions, all of which provide strategic advice to assist companies in making critical business decisions. In addition, the firm’s attorneys perform IP due diligence related to transactions that include licensing agreements, joint ventures, mergers & acquisitions, and venture capital investments.

1101 K Street, NW, 10th floor

Washington, D.C. 20005

www.sternekessler.com