Desmarais LLP

In 2010, John Desmarais left a successful patent litigation practice with Kirkland & Ellis to hang a shingle with some of his former Kirkland colleagues. The result was Desmarais LLP, now a successful and expanding midsize law firm focused primarily on trial and appellate-level patent litigation. The firm represents a wide array of plaintiffs and defendants, including tech giants, such as Apple, Cisco, Google, IBM, Samsung, and Intel, and major pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, such as GlaxoSmithKline and Johnson & Johnson, respectively. The firm also represents smaller clients who seek to obtain exclusive rights to their inventions or technology.

Small Firm, Big Results

At its core, Desmarais is a trial firm adept at handling all stages of litigation. The firm’s Life Sciences and Medical Device practice stands out. The firm handles both patent infringement matters and other disputes relating to IP. In addition to representing pharmaceutical and biotechnology empires, the company represents clients in the chemical, consumer electronics, medical device, semiconductor, software, telecommunication, and transportation industries. 

The experience of firm attorneys is not limited to patent work. Desmaris lawyers handle matters relating to counterfeiting, trademark, and trade dress. They assist clients in matters that vary from antitrust to contract issues and fraud. Clients range from Fortune 100 companies to individuals.

Attorneys at Desmarais LLP have won multiple high-profile victories on behalf clients. Shortly after opening its doors, the firm won a jury verdict defending Cisco Systems, Inc., against claims of infringement in VirnetX, Inc. et al. v. Cisco Systems, Inc. Despite the plaintiff's previous victories against Apple and Microsoft that totaled hundreds of millions of dollars, the litigators of Desmarais argued successfully that Cisco did not infringe the patents, and the jury wholly rejected VirnetX's $258 million claim for damages and injunctive relief. Recently, the firm achieved a high-profile, $272.5 million victory for Ravgen; the judgment was later increased by $100 million. Over the years, the firm has also represented patentee plaintiffs in lawsuits against big names such as Dell, Lenovo, Acer, Oracle, Roche, Toshiba, and Amazon.

Kissing Billables Goodbye

To serve its clients better, Desmarais LLP has completely eliminated the billable hour requirement commonly imposed by large firms with IP practices. Clients work closely with attorneys at Desmarais LLP to choose a fee arrangement that best fits the client's needs. Clients seeking predictability may negotiate a flat fee for specific work at the beginning of their relationship with the firm. Clients willing to share the risk of litigation with the firm may negotiate a contingency fee arrangement. Clients are also free to propose a hybrid fee arrangement incorporating a flat fee combined with bonuses for reaching litigation goals. From attorneys' perspectives, the lack of a billable hour requirement encourages partners and associates alike to focus on winning cases in an efficient manner and eliminates any pressure to overbill.

• Leading Firm—New York Intellectual Property: Patent Litigation, 2023—Chambers USA
• Leading Lawyers—New York Intellectual Property: Patent Litigation, 2023—Chambers USA
• Global Leaders, 2023—IAM
• Top 250 Women in IP, 2020-2023—Managing Intellectual Property
• Best Intellectual Property Specialty Law Firms, 2020-2024—Vault