Ronald S. Lemieux
Partner
Ron Lemieux has served as lead counsel in more than 200 intellectual property disputes for clients such as ASUS, Sony Computer Entertainment America, Elekta, Pegatron, PINC Solutions, MediaTek, ChipMOS Technologies, Rohm, ASRock, Olympus, Konami Digital Entertainment, Silicon Graphics, Sumitronics, IDT, Winbond, FIC, Sakata Seeds and Royal Sluis, among others. Ron has significant industry experience in semiconductor design and manufacturing, consumer electronics, wireless, cellular, medical devices, software and solar energy devices. He has extensive licensing and trial experience and has taken more than 20 cases to final verdict in both jury and bench trials in courtrooms nationwide. Ron has also argued several successful appeals before the Federal Circuit and achieved positive results for clients in 337 proceedings before the US International Trade Commission.
Ron serves as an early neutral evaluator for the US District Court, Northern District of California, and has served as a court-appointed settlement neutral elsewhere. Ron publishes regularly and also taught legal writing and research for several years as an adjunct professor at the University of California, Hastings College of the Law.
The IAM Patent 1000 has recognized Ron as a top patent litigation attorney every year since 2014. He has been named a Northern California Super Lawyer for IP Litigation every year since 2012 and has been ranked by Chambers Global and Chambers Asia Pacific. Chambers noted that Ron is “particularly renowned for his patent [litigation] work and enjoys a fine reputation amongst clients in the software, semiconductor, retail, and consumer products arenas.” Ron has been described by The Legal 500 as a “leading litigator across a number of patent areas, particularly the high-tech sectors emanating from Silicon Valley.” He has been recognized as a “Client Service All-Star” by General Counsels of the Fortune 1000, has received an Acritas Star for exemplary client service, and is currently a Senior Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America, a trial lawyer honorary society recognizing the top 5% of trial lawyers in the US.
- Lead counsel in defense of consolidated patent infringement litigation regarding six patents involving cache coherency, host bus and PCI bus arbitration, and partitioned memory techniques (NDCA).
- Lead counsel in defense of multi-patent claims relating to medical radiation devices and treatment (NDGA).
- Lead counsel pursuing claims of patent infringement regarding surgical radiation devices (NDCA).
- Lead counsel pursuing misappropriation of trade secrets regarding the design and manufacture of photovoltaic solar panels (JAMS).
- Co-lead counsel pursuing trade secret claims regarding solid state battery development and manufacture (Cal. Sup. Ct, Santa Clara).
- Co-trial counsel in defense of multiple patents regarding system clocks (NDCA).
- Lead counsel in defense of patent infringement claims involving portable document cameras (ITC and SDCA).
- Lead counsel in defense of consolidated patent litigation regarding RFID technology (NDCA).
- Lead counsel in defense of patent and trade secret claims involving USB 3.0 controller technology (NDCA).
- Lead counsel in defense of ITC investigation regarding audio codecs (ITC).
- Lead counsel in defense of patent infringement claims regarding playlists and audio files (EDTX).
- Lead counsel in defense of patent infringement for channel selection in OFDMA systems (NDCA).
- Lead counsel in defense of patent claims on accelerometer fabrication (EDTX).
- Lead counsel in defense of multidistrict patent litigation regarding logistics patents (DDEL, NDIL, WDWI, EDTX, SDTX, EDCA, NDCA).
- Lead trial counsel in defense of patent and trade secret claims regarding alleged defects in floppy disk controllers (D. Utah).
- Lead counsel in defense of claims over semiconductor packaging technology (NDCA).
- Lead counsel in defense of multi-patent claims over Super I/O controllers (DWy).
- Lead counsel pursuing multiple patents involving 3G cellular technology (NDTX).
- Lead counsel pursuing multiple patents on behalf of a Japanese digital entertainment company against a US-based multimedia company and video game designer (EDTX and DMass).
- Co-lead counsel enforcing three patents covering a wide spectrum of consumer electronics goods on behalf of a multinational electronics company (EDTX).
- Lead counsel in defense of a multi-patent case regarding the configuration of optical disk drives (EDTX).
- Lead counsel in defense of multi-patent case regarding the operation of optical disk drives (WDWI).
- Lead counsel in defense of patent litigation regarding virus protection techniques (SDNY).
- Lead counsel in defense of a patent involving technology for electronic music (NDILL).
- Lead counsel pursuing a business method patent in the financial services industry (EDTX).
- Lead intellectual property counsel for claims made against Debtor-in-Possession during successful reorganization proceeding (SDNY-Bankruptcy).
- Local trial counsel representing a generic pharmaceutical company seeking to invalidate a patent for an ophthalmic preservation system (NDCA).
- Lead counsel pursuing claims of trademark infringement against medical device company (NDCA).
- Lead counsel representing a Japanese agricultural company in defense of plant variety patent claims (NDCA).
- Lead counsel representing a Dutch agricultural company pursing claims of trade secret theft (Superior Court, Monterey County).
- Co-lead counsel in defense of a Japanese Commercial Arbitration Association matter involving a Japanese technology company on claims arising out of a failed joint venture and patent infringement for medical technology (JCAA-Tokyo).
- Lead counsel representing a multinational computer company in claims arising out of the privatization and establishment of an Eastern European cellular telephone network (NDCA).
Education
- University of California, J.D., Hastings College of Law, 1985
- Stanford University, B.A., 1981
Admissions
- California, 1985
Courts
- U.S. Supreme Court
- U.S. Ct. of App., Federal Circuit
- U.S. Ct. of App., Ninth Circuit
- U.S. Dist. Ct., E. Dist. of Texas
- U.S. Dist. Ct., N. Dist. of California
- U.S. Dist. Ct., C. Dist. of California
- U.S. Dist. Ct., E. Dist. of California
- U.S. Dist. Ct., S. Dist. of California
- U.S. Dist. Ct., Arizona
- U.S. Dist. Ct., Colorado
- Recognized by IAM Patent 1000 as a top patent litigation attorney 2014-2023.
- Included in Thomson Reuters’ list of Northern California Super Lawyers 2012-2021.
- ACRITAS Star in 2019 for exemplary client service.
- Senior Fellow, Litigation Counsel of America, a trial lawyer honorary society recognizing the top 5% of trial lawyers nationwide.
- Co-author, “Move Over Marshall, There Is a New Sheriff In Town – The Rise of Waco and the Western District of Texas,” March 28, 2021.
- Co-author, “Trends and Developments,” Chambers Patent Litigation 2021, February 15, 2021.
- Co-author, “Foreign Defendants, You’ve Got Mail! Substitute Service by Email Increasingly Permitted,” February 11, 2021.
- Co-author, “Prying Eyes – Practical Steps for the Protection of Trade Secrets During the Pandemic,” May 7, 2020.
- Co-author, “The Defend Trade Secrets Act (“DTSA”) Can Apply to Acts of Misappropriation Occurring Entirely Outside the United States,” February 24, 2020.