People

John Inge Counsel

Tokio; Washington, D.C.

John has experience handling matters involving a wide range of technologies, including semiconductor devices, consumer electronics, communications systems, computers and associated equipment, radar, optics (including fiber optics), medical and surgical devices, display systems, lighting devices, printing systems, electronic photography, energy storage devices and plastic molding technology. 

John's legal practice spans patent litigation, interferences, validity and infringement investigations, and negotiations and licensing involving all aspects of intellectual property. Joint venture and research and development agreements in an international context are a particular area of his focus. He frequently counsels clients in both the United States and Japan on patent portfolio management and intellectual property strategies.

John currently teaches a course on International Intellectual Property Strategy at Hitotsubashi University in Tokyo. He previously served on the adjunct faculty of George Mason University School of Law, teaching courses on interference practice and other advanced areas of U.S. PTO practice. He also taught international intellectual property law at Temple University Law School’s Tokyo campus. He also was the longest-serving chairman of the Board of Directors of Yokohama International School, one of the world’s oldest and most prestigious institutions of secondary international education, and he currently chairs the school’s Board of Trustees. John regularly lectures throughout the Pacific Rim on intellectual property law topics. He is also a frequent lecturer on U.S. patent practice at public and in-house seminars in Japan.

Gargi Talukder Partner

San Francisco

Gargi’s work in protein therapeutics includes patent estate development for antibody and fusion protein therapeutics and utilizes her knowledge of the patent landscape in this area to inform strategic portfolio management. In the fields of genomics and proteomics, she has conducted diligence and developed portfolios related to the biochemistry of sequencing technologies, as well as to the associated devices and machine learning methods utilized in sequencing methods. In the field of cancer immunotherapies (immuno-oncology), she has developed portfolios related to cell-based immunotherapy approaches, including targeted immune cell therapies and immunological pathway interventions.

In addition, Gargi assists clients in providing intellectual property support for transactional matters, including diligence for mergers and acquisitions as well as financing rounds. Her technical experience is routinely called upon in helping to develop litigation strategies for complex and high-stakes trials.

Gargi has authored scientific papers in peer-reviewed publications, as well as articles discussing medical and biological research in general-interest newspapers and periodicals. Her doctoral work in Neuroscience from Stanford University focused on structure-function studies in ion channels, with an emphasis on using genetic engineering and electrophysiology to identify structural elements of potassium channels that lead to their voltage and chemical sensitivity.

Jason Yu Partner

Silicon Valley

Jason has represented technology companies in multiple venues, including various state and federal courts, the International Trade Commission, and the Patent and Trademark office. His matters span different technological areas including, Information Technology, satellite communications, semiconductor manufacturing, circuit design and verification tools, image texture and graphics processing, gaming, and a variety of software products.

Tom Chen Of Counsel

Orange County

Tom joined Orrick after serving for several years as an investigative attorney in the Office of Unfair Import Investigations at the U.S. International Trade Commission, where he was lead counsel representing the public interest in numerous Section 337 investigations involving allegations of patent infringement, trade dress infringement, and false advertising. During his tenure as an investigative attorney, Tom successfully first-chaired numerous evidentiary hearings and claim construction hearings, and he also was responsible for briefing all procedural and merits issues before the administrative law judges and the Commission.

Before his government service, Tom was associated with international law firms, where he successfully litigated life sciences patent matters involving large molecule and small molecule therapeutics in patent infringement disputes in district court, inter partes review proceedings before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and patent appeals before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Early in his career, Tom served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Alvin A. Schall of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and to the Honorable Leonard P. Stark, then of the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware.

Tom earned his law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law, where he was a member of the Virginia Law Review and the Virginia Journal of Law & Technology, and won numerous internal and external writing awards and competitions. Before law school, Tom completed a master’s degree in biotechnology from the Johns Hopkins University and a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and pharmacology from Duke University.

Bas de Blank Partner

Silicon Valley

In addition to his ITC practice, Bas also heads Orrick’s contentious prosecution practice. He has led more than 30 IPRs and first-chaired more than a dozen trials before the United States Patent Office, as well as represented clients in dozens of trials in district courts, and before PTAB.

As someone with degrees in both engineering and English literature, Bas is uniquely suited to present complicated topics to non-technical audiences. He has represented clients in fields as diverse as semiconductor processing and structure, GPS and geosynchronous satellites, image texture and graphics processing, Internet switches and communications, and various consumer products.

Richard F. Martinelli Partner

New York

He has litigated patents at trial, before the ITC, and on appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Rich has counseled clients and rendered opinions on patent validity, infringement and freedom to use. He is a registered patent attorney with experience drafting patents and practicing before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Rich’s patent work has involved a wide range of technologies including image processing, 3d graphics, audio / video compression, computer hardware and software, e-commerce, network technologies, digital rights management and encryption.

Rich also helps companies address the novel litigation and transactional IP issues that arise when developing and working with AI and is a frequent lecturer on these topics.

Lisa T. Simpson Partner

New York

Lisa has been recognized as one of the "Top 250 Women in IP" by Managing Intellectual Property and has received accolades from American Lawyer, Benchmark Litigation, The Legal 500 USA and New York Times Magazine with World Trademark Review 1000 noting that Lisa “marries a rich comprehension of IP law with a gift for connecting with people, making full use of each advantage in the courtroom.” Lisa was recently named to Lawdragon's 500 Leading Litigators in America list.

Trial Experience

Lisa has served as trial counsel across a wide range of matters. She recently served as co-lead trial counsel in a case in Delaware Chancery Court in a dispute over corporate control and ownership. She is currently serving as lead trial counsel in an energy distribution contract and rate dispute in North Dakota. Lisa also served as trial counsel for Oracle in its dispute with Google over the Java APIs in Android phones in the Northern District of California and served as trial counsel in a matter involving the trade dress of a hip implant medical device in the District of Colorado. Lisa has also served as trial counsel in a number of product liability matters involving allegations concerning talc, analgesics and herbicides.

Intellectual Property

Lisa handles a variety of high-profile trademark, trade secret, and copyright matters. Lisa’s copyright experience includes some of the leading copyright cases of the past decade: she represented Oracle in its litigation with Google over the Java APIs, represented DISH Networks, LCC in its copyright litigation with the broadcast networks over various features offered by DISH’s Hopper DVR, including AutoHop and Sling and served as counsel to Supap Kirtsaeng before the U.S. Supreme Court on the issue of the copyright first sale doctrine’s applicability to goods manufactured abroad.

Lisa’s trademark and trade secret litigation has spanned a variety of courts and industries: she successfully defended trademark infringement claims in the Northern District of California on behalf of Sony over its popular “Gran Turismo” racing video game and scored two separate wins in the Southern District of New York and then in the Second Circuit on behalf of client Sanei in trademark litigation brought by fashion designer Jill Stuart. Lisa also successful established secondary meaning and secured a preliminary injunction for the New York City Triathlon in S.D.N.Y. Lisa also represented a major pharmaceutical and healthcare company in trade secrets litigation concerning multi-payor coordination of prescription drug benefits loyalty cards.

Products Liability and Consumer Class Action

Lisa serves as counsel to Johnson & Johnson, Chanel, and Avon in cases asserting claims arising from the use of its talcum powder products, including claims of mesothelioma and ovarian cancer. She also represented Wyeth and Dow Agrosciences in a variety of complex products liability and consumer class action litigations. Lisa served as counsel in hundreds of product liability matters concerning injuries allegedly associated with childhood vaccines, handled litigations involving the labeling and advertising of Advil, and obtained the dismissal, prior to class certification, of a consumer class action in a matter concerning the calcium supplement Caltrate.

Current Pro Bono Representation

Lisa served as trial counsel for Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky, securing an important trial win invalidating as unconstitutional a statewide law that jeopardized access to safe and legal abortion services in Kentucky.
Lisa also has served in a variety of firm management roles, including on the Firm’s Management Committee, as Hiring Partner for the New York office as well as Partner-in-Charge of Firmwide Campus Recruiting and as a member of the Professional Development Committee.

Kaitlyn Rodnick Associate

New York

Kaitlyn is experienced in Hatch-Waxman litigation and inter partes review proceedings, including disputes involving drug treatments for cancer, therapeutic antibodies, and medical devices. Kaitlyn also has significant experience in IP due diligence and licensing associated with high-profile acquisitions.

Alex Sobolev Partner

London

Alex’s multidisciplinary practice and transatlantic experience enable him to provide strategic commercial advice for technology led companies, including coordinating and implementing data and consumer risk mitigation projects, providing outsourcing advice and developing key legal risk mitigation strategies in relation to products where the pace of innovation nearly always outpaces the law.

He has advised companies at all stages of the corporate lifecycle, from software development and product launch, through technology licensing, sale and purchase, to mergers and acquisitions of data and tech-heavy businesses. He has assisted organisations with the design, development and implementation of global data protection and compliance policies, as well the management of risk and security associated with data retention, processing and transfer.