Brian is a senior counsel in the firm's Litigation Department and a member of the Intellectual Property Group. He has been recognized by ALM as a Top Rated Lawyer in Intellectual Property Law and is listed in the IAM Patent 1000 as a leading patent litigator. His trial practice takes him to courts throughout the country in cases concerning patents, trade secrets, unfair competition, licenses, false advertising, trademarks and copyrights. Brian has represented leading national and international corporations in disputes involving fabrication of semi-conductors, smart energy meters, pharmaceuticals, computer networking, medical imaging, telecommunications, IT systems, Java computing, consumer appliances, software, FinTech, e-commerce, fiber optics, data encryption, and medical devices.
Experience
Representative matters
Representative matters
Trade secret misappropriation. Obtained $66 million jury verdict as lead counsel for LED manufacturer Lumileds. After a one-month trial, a Silicon Valley jury found that a China-based company and its CEO misappropriated our client’s LED technology and used it to develop its own products at its facilities in China. Lumileds LLC v. Elec-Tech International Co., No. 2015-cv-278566 (California Superior Court, County of Santa Clara).
Copyright infringement and trade secret misappropriation. Lead counsel for software developer claiming that Caterpillar Inc. infringed a copyright and misappropriated trade secrets involving inventory management software. After a one-month trial, the jury found in favor of Mr. Roche's client, HotSamba, Inc., on both claims, found that Caterpillar's trade secret misappropriation was malicious, and awarded compensatory and punitive damages. HotSamba Inc. v. Caterpillar Inc., No. 01cv5540 (N.D. Ill.).
Lanham Act and unfair competition. Represented Whirlpool Corporation as co-counsel in a two-week jury trial where LG Electronics USA, Inc. sought $85 million in damages for alleged false advertising and unfair competition. The jury returned a verdict for Whirlpool, awarding nothing to LG and rejecting LG's claims under the Lanham Act and the Illinois Consumer Fraud Act. LG Electronics USA, Inc. v. Whirlpool, No. 08cv00242 (N. D. Ill.).
Trade secret misappropriation. Obtained $66 million jury verdict as lead counsel for LED manufacturer Lumileds. After a one-month trial, a Silicon Valley jury found that a China-based company and its CEO misappropriated our client’s LED technology and used it to develop its own products at its facilities in China. Lumileds LLC v. Elec-Tech International Co., No. 2015-cv-278566 (California Superior Court, County of Santa Clara).
Copyright infringement and trade secret misappropriation. Lead counsel for software developer claiming that Caterpillar Inc. infringed a copyright and misappropriated trade secrets involving inventory management software. After a one-month trial, the jury found in favor of Mr. Roche's client, HotSamba, Inc., on both claims, found that Caterpillar's trade secret misappropriation was malicious, and awarded compensatory and punitive damages. HotSamba Inc. v. Caterpillar Inc., No. 01cv5540 (N.D. Ill.).
Lanham Act and unfair competition. Represented Whirlpool Corporation as co-counsel in a two-week jury trial where LG Electronics USA, Inc. sought $85 million in damages for alleged false advertising and unfair competition. The jury returned a verdict for Whirlpool, awarding nothing to LG and rejecting LG's claims under the Lanham Act and the Illinois Consumer Fraud Act. LG Electronics USA, Inc. v. Whirlpool, No. 08cv00242 (N. D. Ill.).
Patent infringement. Lead trial counsel for Eastman Kodak Company in a three week jury trial against Sun Microsystems. The jury found Sun's Java computer platform infringed Kodak's patents, resulting in a public settlement with Sun paying Kodak $92 million in exchange for a license. At the close of the trial, U.S. District Judge Michael A. Telesca stated that "in the 30-some years that I have been on the bench and 22 years in this courtroom, I have never presided over a case that was so well prepared and well presented in such a professional manner as both sides presented this case." Eastman Kodak Co. v. Sun Microsystems, Inc., No. 02cv06074 (W.D.N.Y.).
Defended a national information technology consulting firm in a five-month arbitration in which its customer alleged that the consulting firm was responsible for installing a defective customized computer system. The arbitrator rejected all of the customer's claims.
General Electric Company against a claim that it infringes a patent in the field of MRI technology. Invalidated asserted patents in two parallel IPR proceedings. University of Virginia Patent Foundation v. General Electric Company, No. 14cv00051 (W.D. Va.).
Nintendo against claim that the Wii video gaming consoles infringe a patent. Invalidated asserted patent in a parallel IPR proceeding. Motion Games v. Nintendo of America, Inc., et al, No. 12cv00878 (E.D. Tex.).
CenturyLink, Inc. in a patent case directed to a coding scheme for signal transmission in optical networks. Obtained summary judgment of non-infringement. Sycamore IP Holdings LLC v. CenturyLink, Inc., No. 16cv00589 (E.D. Tex.).
General Electric Company against a claim that its patient monitoring systems infringe a patent held by the University of Florida Research Foundation. Obtained dismissal of the case on the grounds that the University’s patent did not cover patentable subject matter. University of Florida Research Foundation v. General Electric Company, No. 17cv00171 (N.D. Fla.).
General Electric Company against a claim that it infringes a U.S. patent relating to wireless monitoring of utility meters. GroupChatter, LLC v. General Electric Company, No. 16cv00486 (N.D. Ga.).
General Electric Company against a claim that it infringes a U.S. patent for web-based email. Obtained summary judgment of non-infringement. Unified Messaging Solutions v. GECC, et al, No. 12cv06286 (N.D. Ill.).
General Electric Company against a claim that it infringes a U.S. patent in the field of ultrasound technology. Gergely v. General Electric Company, No. 14-cv-00019 (C.D. Cal.).
General Electric Company against a claim that it infringes a patent directed to remote sensing of moisture within buildings. RM2, Inc. v. General Electric Company, No. 13cv02078 (C.D. Ca.).
General Electric Company against a claim that it and several subsidiaries infringe U.S. patents on computerized marketing methods and apparatuses. Phoenix Licensing v. General Electric Company, et al, No. 11cv00286 (E.D. Tex.).
Nintendo against claim that the controller for the Wii video game infringes a U. S. patent. Martin v. Nintendo of America, Inc., No. 08cv1398 (N.D. Ill.).
CenturyLink, Inc. in a patent case directed to fiber optics networks. TR Labs v. CenturyLink, Inc., et al, No. 09cv03883 (D.N.J.).
CenturyLink, Inc. in a patent case directed to multiprotocol label switching in fiber optics networks. GlobeTecTrust LLC v. Qwest et al, No. 13cv00952 (D. Del.)
CenturyLink, Inc. in a patent case directed to fiber optics networks. Relay IP v. Savvis, et al., No. 13cv00780 (D. Del.)
Whirlpool Corporation, Masco Corporation, Schneider-Electric, Weyerhaeuser, Inc., HNI, Inc., and York International against a claim that they infringed a patent claiming a web-based system for selecting upgrades and products for new homes. OLA, LLC v. Builder Homesite, Inc., No. 08cv324 (E.D. Tex.).
Qwest Communications Corporation against claim that its telecommunications network infringes a patent claiming an end-to-end fiber optic network. Red River Fiber Optic Corp. v. Verizon Services Corp., et al., No. 08cv00215 (E.D. Tex.).
Qwest Communications International, Inc. in defense of claim of trademark infringement. ISP.NET LLC v. Qwest Communications International, Inc., No. 01cv0480 (S.D. Ind.).
Fiserv, Inc. against claim that a Fiserv financial services product infringes a patent claiming a method for encrypting information on negotiable instruments. Advanced Software Design Corp. v. Fiserv, Inc., No. 07cv0185 (E.D. Mo.).
Eastman Kodak Company in defense of claims that e-commerce functions on its website infringed a patent. Millennium LP v. Eastman Kodak Company, No. 05cv5574 (D. N.J.).
3Com Corporation and U.S. Robotics in a copyright and licensing dispute concerning remote access server technology. Livingston Enterprises, Inc. v. U.S. Robotics Access Corp., No. 97cv3487 (N.D. Cal.).
Schering-Plough Corp. in defense of claims for false advertising and unfair competition under the Lanham Act. Pethealth Services (USA), Inc. v. Schering Plough Corporation, No. 07cv0521 (W.D. Wis.).
Siemens AG in defense of a claim of trademark infringement. Siemens A.G. v. MarketNet, Inc., et al., No. 07cv5288 (N.D. Ill.).
ClearLinx Network Corporation (now known as ExteNet Systems, Inc.) in defense of a claim that its distributed antenna system for a cellular network infringed Next G's patents. Next G Networks, Inc. v. ClearLinx Network Corporation, No. 05cv0582 (C.D. Cal.).
Represented the National Futures Association (the futures industry counterpart to the FINRA) in defense of a constitutional and statutory challenge to its rulemaking authority. Dismissal affirmed on appeal. Belom v. National Futures Association, 284 F. 3d 795 (7th Cir. 2002).
Represented the National Futures Association in defense of a class action seeking $50 million in damages arising from a fraudulent commodities trading scheme. Case dismissed in district court and affirmed on appeal. Nicholas v. Saul Stone, LLC, et al., 224 F. 3d 179 (3d Cir. 2000).
Recognitions
- Selected through peer review for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© for Trade Secrets Law, 2023-2025
- ALM, Top Rated Lawyer in Intellectual Property Law
- IAM Patent 1000 list as world leading patent litigator
Credentials
Education
Education
- Georgetown University Law Center, 1982, J.D.
- University of Chicago, 1978, A.B.
Court admissions
Court admissions
- U.S. Supreme Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals - Federal Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals - Third Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals - Seventh Circuit
- U.S. Tax Court
Professional affiliations
Professional affiliations
- Board of Directors, Resolution Systems Institute, Chicago, IL