Max Grant is the former Global Chair of the Intellectual Property Litigation Practice, which Chambers USA ranked as the top IP practice in the United States in 2022, is ranked Band 1 nationally and has won the Chambers Award for Excellence numerous times. The group’s development and trial capabilities were featured in a 2016 article in The Recorder.

Max is a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers and has successfully tried over 30 patent and IP cases to verdict.

  • Went 3-0 in jury trials in 2022, delivering victories for a patentee and invalidating eight patents in two cases for the defense.
  • Highly ranked by Chambers since 2009 for both IP Litigation and ITC litigation as “a results-oriented attorney who delivers.” He is “strategic, aggressive in litigation and excellent in the courtroom,” has a “laser focus on key issues and execution of the approved plans” and is an “incredible professional, focused on business outcomes rather than only the legal ones.” – Chambers Global and Chambers USA 
  • Named one of the Top 10 Most Influential IP Lawyers Defining US Innovation in 2023 by Business Today News
  • Named the 2016 District of Columbia IP Litigator of the Year by Managing Intellectual Property
  • Recognized by The Legal 500 since 2009 as “tough, tenacious [and] recommended” in the ITC; is an “experienced first-chair litigator” with “an excellent track record in life science cases.” – The Legal 500 US 
  • “Max Grant is at the top of his field – he is one of the best IP litigators in the United States. A former Navy SEAL, Max is tough and tenacious. But he is also smart, savvy and practical. Max adeptly orchestrates all of the assets on the battlefield, but he is always focused on the big picture—winning the war. He has a winning style that is a formidable blend of fearsomeness and respect. ” – The Legal 500 2020
  • Recognized by IAM since 2011 “as a ferocious litigator” who is “cut from the finest cloth. He is an ‘outstanding leader’ with exceptional organizational skills. His trial skills are widely admired: ‘His presentation is pristine and he has a background that sits well with the courtroom.’” – IAM Patent 1000
  • Recognized continuously since the 2010 edition of Benchmark Litigation as a Litigation Star 
  • Recognized three times with Innovative Lawyers Awards – Financial Times

Max has secured high-profile wins for companies established and emerging, including NVIDIA, Schlumberger, Philip Morris International, Adobe, Monsanto, Daikin, Latchable, CrossMatch Technologies, InfoBionic, and InterDigital. He served as lead counsel for C.R. Bard; after a six-week trial in the US District Court of Arizona, the jury found that W.L. Gore willfully infringed Bard’s patent and upheld validity. The court enhanced damages, awarded fees, and imposed a compulsory license. The total award was over US$2.1 billion and the win was featured in a cover article in the November 2009 issue of The American Lawyer.

Max joined Latham in 2002, after serving as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations during Operation Enduring Freedom. In 2005, he was appointed by the Secretary of Commerce to the Patent Public Advisory Committee, a nine-member board that advises the Director of the US Patent and Trademark Office on patent policy. Before attending law school, Max served as an aide to Senator John McCain, a Navy SEAL team leader and a US Marine. He is the co-inventor of two patents.

Max's active matters include:

  • Magna Mirrors v. SMR (W.D. Mich.): Jury trial win.  Lead counsel defending nine-patent case on wide view automotive mirror technology. Stipulated to infringement, obtained summary judgment of no convoyed sales, won jury verdict invalidating all asserted patents.
  • RJ Reynolds v. Philip Morris & Altria (E.D. Va.; ITC): Jury trial win. Lead global coordinating counsel in multi-jurisdictional dispute on innovative “heat-not-burn” technologies. Won jury verdict that RJR e-cigarette products infringe both asserted Philip Morris patents. 
  • WiTricity v. Momentum Dynamics (D. Del.): Lead counsel defending seven-patent case on wireless charging technology for electronic vehicles. One patent invalidated in district court, 4 invalidated in PTAB, district court case stayed.  
  • Healthier Choices v. Philip Morris (N.D. Ga.): Lead counsel defending patent suit on innovative “heat-not-burn” alternatives to combustible cigarettes. Won dismissal on the merits, over $500,000 in attorney’s fees awarded, patent invalidated at PTAB. Appeal on fees pending. 

Max's prior matters include:

  • First Quality Tissue v. Irving Consumer Prods (D. Del): Jury trial win.  Co-lead counsel defending case brought by First Quality Tissue on patent infringement. Jury verdict of no infringement and invalidity of three asserted patents.
  • CardioNet v. InfoBionic (D. Mass.; AAA): Arbitration win.  Lead counsel defending seven-patent case on remote cardiac monitoring technology. Six patents invalidated in district court and PTAB and affirmed at Federal Circuit; summary judgment of noninfringement on final patent. Complete verdict on trade secret claims adjudicated in arbitration. Case favorably settled while motion for fees was pending. 
  • Zapfraud v. Mimecast (D. Del.): Lead counsel defending two patent case; 101-based motion to dismiss granted.
  • Green Mountain Glass v. Owens-Illinois (W.D. Tex.): Lead counsel defending case brought by Green Mountain on glass recycling technology. Case favorably settled after positive claim construction.
  • EnerPol v. Schlumberger (E.D. Tex.; Fed. Cir.): Lead counsel defending case on fracking technology. Plaintiff stipulated to judgment of noninfringement after Schlumberger prevailed on claim construction. Affirmed on appeal.
  • Latch v. LET Investor Group (S.D. N.Y.; AAA, Virginia): Arbitration win.  Lead counsel in multi-jurisdictional dispute involving trade secret misappropriation, breach of contract, and civil RICO claims. Complete verdict on contract claims adjudicated in arbitration. Litigation favorably resolved after dismissal of Virginia state actions.
  • TecSec v. Adobe (E.D. Va.): Jury trial win.  Lead counsel retained four months before jury trial after ten years of litigation on encryption technology. Stipulated to infringement and obtained judgment of zero damages after jury trial and post-trial motions.
  • Fractus v. Verizon (E.D. Tex.): Lead counsel retained six months before jury trial in multi-defendant case against three major telecom carriers. Obtained favorable settlement on eve of trial.
  • Morgan v. United States (S.D. N.Y.): Bench trial win.  Appointed by Court as pro bono counsel in four day bench trial representing formerly pro se prisoner in Federal Torts Claims Act case against US Attorney’s Office for SDNY. Obtained US$130,000 award; highest pro bono award in Court’s recent history.
  • Schlumberger v. Halliburton (AAA): Retained as lead counsel in confidential arbitration on fracking technology. Case favorably settled.
  • 3M v. Amphenol (ITC): Lead counsel in competitor case on shielded electrical ribbon cables. Obtained favorable settlement after claim construction order issued.
  • Samsung v. NVIDIA (E.D. Va.): Jury trial win.  Lead counsel representing defendant in six patent case regarding DRAM and cache memory. Jury verdict of no infringement and invalidity.
  • Acacia v. Schlumberger (W.D. Tex.; Fed. Cir.): Lead counsel defending case brought by Acacia subsidiary on geographic modeling software used for oil exploration. Dismissed on motion to disqualify counsel. Affirmed on appeal.
  • InterDigital v. ZTE (D. Del.; Fed. Cir.): Jury trial win.  Lead counsel in one-week jury trial asserting three patents relating to 3G and WiFi wireless devices. Jury verdict that all asserted claims infringed and valid. Affirmed on appeal.
  • Schlumberger v. Baker Hughes (AAA): Brought in as counsel four months before hearing on horizontal oil drilling technology, co-counseled with Winston & Strawn. Case settled favorably after three-week hearing.
  • Delphix v. Actifio (N.D. Cal.; D. Mass.; PTAB): Lead counsel in multi-jurisdictional litigation relating to virtual storage and infrastructure for database systems: five defensive and two offensive patents in CA; two offensive patents in MA; 12 IPRs. Case favorably settled after PTAB invalidated all asserted claims.
  • InterDigital v. Nokia (ITC): Lead counsel representing patent holder asserting two patents on 3G & LTE wireless devices. After bench trial, patents found infringed and valid by ALJ; overturned by Commission.
  • Cross Match Technologies v. Suprema & Mentalix (ITC & E.D. Tex.; Fed.Cir.): Bench trial win.  Lead counsel in competitor case on biometric identification technology. ITC issued exclusion order barring accused products from importation into the US. Argued en banc appeal affirming exclusion order.
  • Medivation v. Univ. Calif. Regents & Jung (Calif.): Jury trial win.  Lead counsel representing biotech patent holder in four-week state court trial regarding licensing rights to small-molecule drugs to treat prostate cancer, asserting breach of contract and fraud. 
  • Schlumberger v. Baker Hughes (AAA): Lead counsel asserting four patents on optical analysis of hydrocarbons in formation reservoirs. Retained eight weeks before hearing; co-counseled with Kirkland & Ellis. Case favorably settled on eve of trial.
  • CR Bard v. W.L. Gore (D. Ariz.; Fed. Cir.): Jury trial win. Lead counsel in six-week jury trial on vascular grafts. Trial conducted in 2007. Jury verdict of willful infringement and US$185 million in past damages. On post-trial motions, damages doubled to US$371 million, awarded US$19 million in fees and compulsory license. Total award over US$2.1 billion.
  • Wavetronix v. Electronic Integrated Systems (D. Utah): Bench trial win. Lead counsel for defendant in patent case on radar technology for traffic monitoring. Judgment of noninfringement after 14 days of bench trial proceedings. Affirmed.

Bar Qualification

  • District of Columbia
  • Illinois
  • New York
  • Virginia

Education

  • JD, University of Chicago Law School, 1996
    Law Review, with honors
  • MA, Georgetown University, School of Foreign Service, 1989
  • BS in General Engineering, US Naval Academy, 1988
    high merit, with honors
Law and Justice
June 27, 2022 Recognition

Litigator of the Week Runners-Up and Shout Outs

Latham honored for securing a US$10.75 million damages verdict for client Philip Morris International in a patent infringement trial over vaping technology against R.J. Reynolds Vapor.