Intellectual Property Litigation in the U.S. District of Delaware

Delaware has a deserved reputation as a favored forum for the resolution of patent disputes.  In fact, Delaware’s experience in patent litigation reaches back to the beginning of the last century, and the federal bench in Delaware has more experience in resolving patent disputes than any other district in the nation.

In the 1920s, Judge Hugh Morris, then the sole federal judge in Delaware, decided many of the country’s most important patent cases.  Judge Morris left the bench to found the Morris Nichols firm, and for many years was regarded as one of the top patent litigators in this country.  In the 1960s and 1970s, Chief Judge Caleb Wright presided over numerous patent cases (such as on petroleum refining and the manufacture of synthetic rubber, polyurethane foam insulation and transistors), thereby helping to establish the reputation of the District of Delaware on a national scale as a preeminent forum for patent disputes.  His shoes were later filled by other Delaware judges renowned as the top patent trial judges of the country, up to the current bench, with each of its judges currently managing over fifty active patent cases each.

As the District Court over the years has developed into a premier venue for patent litigation, Morris Nichols in that time has been recognized as the premier patent litigation firm in Delaware.  Indeed, the firm is counsel in nearly half of the intellectual property cases pending in the U.S. District of Delaware, either serving as lead counsel or assisting as co-counsel in cases brought to Delaware by patent litigators from around the country.  The breadth and depth of Morris Nichols’ patent litigation experience is such that it has been ranked among the top ten firms nationwide for appearances in patent cases by American Lawyer Publishing for six years in a row.