MICHAEL FRANZINGER is a trial and appellate lawyer for clients in patent, trade secret, and other technically-oriented litigation and administrative proceedings. His practice focuses on Section 337 investigations before the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC). He has represented and advised clients in nearly 30 ITC Section 337 investigations, as well as arbitrations and mediations, district court lawsuits, patent reexaminations and reviews, license negotiations and merger due diligence. As a member of Sidley’s IP Litigation group, Mike routinely handles technical issues ranging from electronics and software to chemistry and materials science, and has taken on leading roles at trial, including first-chair counsel. These matters have spanned a variety of different technologies, including networked storage, mobile communication, digital radio, solar cells, audio processing, touchscreen interfaces, digital rights management, electronic securities trading, semiconductor fabrication, biometrics, electronics packaging, rubber resins and agricultural chemicals.
Mike has been a principal contributor to numerous Sidley IP litigation successes, including:
- Eight ITC investigation wins in the past decade.
- Defeating a summary judgment motion seeking dismissal of the client’s antitrust claims in standard-essential patent / FRAND licensing litigation.
- A jury verdict of noninfringement in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, thwarting plaintiff’s claim for damages in the high nine figures.
- Persuading a Court-appointed neutral expert witness in a semiconductor case to opine in our client’s favor on both noninfringement and invalidity.
Mike simultaneously earned both a law degree and a Master’s in materials science from the University of California, Berkeley. He served on the editorial boards of the California Law Review and the Berkeley Technology Law Journal. While in school, he also prosecuted patents as a registered patent agent.