Orrick Amicus Efforts Back Racial Diversity in College Admissions in U.S. Supreme Court Case

1 minute read | August.02.2022

Urging the U.S. Supreme Court to preserve policies ensuring racial diversity in college admissions, two Orrick teams supported separate amicus efforts in a closely-watched case involving admissions policies at Harvard and the University of North Carolina.

An appellate team led by partner Mark Davies filed an amicus on behalf of leading science and technology companies, including Gilead, Applied Materials, Microsoft and Micron, citing 40 years of legal precedent upholding racial diversity as a factor in college admissions.

“For science and technology companies to achieve … competitive advantages, universities must admit racially diverse classes of students and foster inclusive cultures,” the brief states. “[C]ompanies whose workforces are racially and otherwise diverse will be better equipped to identify and address any number of scientific and technological challenges … Tech companies work on unconventional questions that require creative solutions, and diverse groups consistently outperform homogenous groups on exactly that type of problem solving.”

In another brief, an appellate team led by associate Upnit Bhatti filed an amicus on behalf of the Washington Bar Association and the Women’s Bar Association of the District of Columbia, arguing there is a continued need for affirmative action in colleges and universities “to correct the injustices perpetrated against Black Americans through centuries of enslavement and second-class citizenship.”

In addition to Upnit, the team on the Washington Bar Association brief includes partner Danny Rubens and associates Max Carter-Oberstone and Amari Hammonds.

In addition to Mark, the team on the brief for tech and science companies includes senior counsel Tom Bondy, partners Josh Rosenkranz and Lorraine McGowen and associates Sheila Baynes, Katherine Kopp and Sarah Sloan.

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Mark Davies Partner, Supreme Court & Appellate, Propriété intellectuelle

Washington, D.C.

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D:+1 202 339 8631
E: [email protected]

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Supreme Court & Appellate
Propriété intellectuelle

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Mark Davies Partner

Washington, D.C.

Mark is a highly successful appellate lawyer who has argued and briefed many cases, both in private practice and government. Mark has argued 50 appellate cases, including multiple arguments for one of the world’s leading high-technology companies. He has handled many appeals for Asian and European companies in U.S. courts, including challenges to International Trade Commission actions. He has represented, often repeatedly, companies such as Bosch, Cisco, EMC, Emerson, Ericsson, Fujitsu, Harmon, Honda, Intel, MediaTek, Microsoft, Nintendo, Nvidia, Oracle, Solar City, Sonos, Tesla, TSMC, VeriFone, Vizio, and others. And, he regularly helps defeat non-practicing entities such as Intellectual Ventures, IP Bridge, and Uniloc Corporation.

Legal 500 reports, “prominent in the high-tech field, Mark Davies…is praised for his ‘unparalleled Federal Circuit experience.’” An interviewee noted that he “‘is an outstanding leader of their appellate teams, as well as a skilled and subtle advocate. He really knows the Federal Circuit. Mark also has the crucial ability to see both the big-picture forest and the technically-detailed trees at the same time, and to weave them all together into a compelling story on appeal.’”

Mark is ranked in Chambers USA for Nationwide Appellate Law and Nationwide Intellectual Property: Appellate. Chambers USA 2023 quotes an interviewee that said: "He knows the Court's history, what the best arguments would be, how to present them and how to frame the issues to maximize the chances of the Supreme Court accepting cert." Another interviewee said: "He is very responsive and thoughtful. He has a great presence, a strong command of the cases he's arguing and good rapport with judges."

Mark’s practice focuses on cutting-edge legal issues of particular importance to high-technology clients, including novel issues such as patent damages, standard setting, and artificial intelligence.

He is the author of the “user manual” for Federal Circuit appeals, Patent Appeals: The Elements of Effective Advocacy in the Federal Circuit (November 2017). His cases have involved virtually every area of patent law, as well as copyright, trade secret, and trademark law.

Mark is also the author of a legal treatise Artificial Intelligence: Law & Litigation (LexisNexis/Matthew Bender June 2023).

Mark appears frequently in federal district courts, serving as legal strategist in complex intellectual property cases. In high-stakes trials, he often leads ‘appellate eyes’ teams to set the stage for the inevitable appellate proceedings.

He also plays an active role in the development of U.S. technology policy and has represented clients at the Department of Justice, the Commerce Department, the Federal Trade Commission, the Patent and Trademark Office, and other government agencies. His amicus briefs on behalf of various technology clients are often cited in judicial opinions.

Mark also has a strong pro bono appellate practice, representing clients in the D.C. Court of Appeals, as well as the U.S. immigration and criminal systems. He is a member of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals Criminal Justice Act Panel.

Before joining Orrick, Mark served as a member of the Appellate Staff of the Civil Division at the U.S. Department of Justice (1999-2006), where he represented the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the Copyright Office, the International Trade Commission and other federal agencies before the Federal Circuit, other U.S. Courts of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court. Mark also practiced with another major law firm appellate practice in Washington D.C.

Upnit K. Bhatti Senior Associate, Supreme Court & Appellate, Contentieux complexes & Résolution des litiges

Washington, D.C.

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D:+1 202 339 8608
E: [email protected]

Practice:

Supreme Court & Appellate
Contentieux complexes & Résolution des litiges
Mass Torts & Product Liability

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Upnit K. Bhatti Senior Associate

Washington, D.C.

Upnit has served as litigation, trial, and appellate counsel for pharmaceutical, chemical, technology, cosmetics, and manufacturing companies. As a member of trial teams, she works on complex commercial matters to develop creative legal strategies for trial and subsequent appeals. As embedded counsel, Upnit takes the lead in drafting dispositive motions and pre- and post-trial filings and ensures that appellate issues are preserved. She has presented oral argument in state and federal courts and has co-authored countless briefs before state and federal trial and appellate courts, including the Supreme Court of the United States. In addition, Upnit maintains an active pro bono practice.

Prior to joining Orrick, Upnit focused on products liability and complex litigation work at Arnold & Porter LLP and a mid-size firm in Upstate New York. This included representing a consumer products company in the defense of thousands of personal injury cases in state and federal courts. She was the primary drafter of several motions and appellate briefs. She was also deeply involved in the firms’ pro bono practices and first chaired a trial dealing with First and Eighth Amendment claims.

Outside of the firm, Upnit serves on the Board of Directors of the DC Women’s Bar Association and serves as its Advocacy Committee Co-Chair. She is also a member of the Board of Directors of her law school’s Alumni Association.

Upnit previously clerked for the Honorable Theodore A. McKee of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals and interned for the Honorable Thérèse Wiley Dancks of the Northern District of New York. In law school, Upnit served as the Managing Editor of the Syracuse Law Review, and was an arguing member of the American Bar Association’s National Appellate Team. She received the Moot Court Honor Society’s Executive Director Award and the Syracuse Law Review Distinguished Leadership Award.

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