Lex Machina Ranks Fish & Richardson Most Active Firm for Patent Defense and PTAB Work

According to Lex Machina’s 2023 Patent Litigation Report, Fish & Richardson notched the most patent defense work and topped the rankings as the most active firm at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board.

In patent defense litigation, Lex Machina ranked Fish #1 by a wide margin, finding that the firm represented defendants in 728 matters from 2020 to 2022. Fish surpassed the second-ranked firm by nearly twice the number of cases. Fish’s geographical reach was unmatched as well, topping the charts at 42 districts.

"We take a lot of pride in the fact that we represent many of our most important clients in the places where patent cases are getting filed the most," said Fish President & CEO John Adkisson in a Law360 story covering the report. The firm has a deep bench in Wilmington, Delaware, as well as the Eastern and Western Districts of Texas, but also embraces a “one firm” approach that pulls in technical knowledge and leverages experience from across its 14 offices.

The report also ranked Fish as the most active firm at the PTAB. From 2020 to 2022, Fish handled 484 trials, leading the next firm on the list by over 150 appearances.

In an interview with Law360, Post-Grant Practice Group Chair Karl Renner noted that the PTAB is the “perfect intersection” for Fish given the firm’s strength in both patent prosecution and patent litigation across numerous venues and forums.

What sets Fish’s post-grant practice apart is the intentionality of its knowledge sharing. Following each hearing at the PTAB, attorney teams are interviewed to assess and capture lessons learned and surface interesting issues and tactics to harness that experience for the benefit of all firm clients. "We're leading across the board, and we're bringing that experience across the board for our team's and clients’ benefit,” Renner told Law360.

As noted by Renner, the firm is also an industry leader in patent prosecution. Fish obtained more U.S. patents in 2022 than any other firm, securing more than 5,390 patents – 600 more than its nearest competitor, including more first-filed patents than any other firm, according to Derwent Innovation data. The firm filed more than 17,850 U.S. and foreign patent applications in 2022.

“Fish’s patent prosecution and counseling team embodies a rare combination of deep technical prowess and legal knowledge that benefits our clients,” said John F. Hayden, Fish’s Global Head of IP. “Inventors trust us to safeguard their ideas and prototypes, and stick with us because we understand their technology, business, and long-range goals on a fundamental level.”