The following is an excerpt from Practice Perspectives: Vault's Guide to Legal Practice Areas.
Yungmoon Chang is an intellectual property (IP) litigation partner in Kirkland’s Los Angeles office. Her practice covers a wide breadth of patent, trade secret, trademark, and copyright issues that span a variety of industries and technologies, including electronics, construction, cosmetics, gaming, automobiles, pharmaceuticals, and medical devices. Yungmoon has played an integral role on case teams in both federal and state courts, as well as before the United States Patent and Trade Office (USPTO) and International Trade Commission (ITC). She has achieved numerous favorable outcomes for clients at all stages of litigation, including multiple trial victories, successful dispositive motions (including at the pleading stage), and early resolution of cases. She has experience in witness examination, oral argument, and all aspects of discovery.
Laura Ashley Harris is an IP litigation partner in Kirkland’s Bay Area office. Laura Ashley focuses on complex patent and trade secret litigation as well as white collar investigations. With a bachelor’s and master’s in engineering, she has represented clients in industries ranging from immunotherapies, biotech, and medical devices to computer software and hardware, cellular and wireless networks, and consumer products. Laura Ashley has experience with all stages of litigation, including pre-suit investigations, trials, and appeals, and her experience includes the Federal Circuit, federal district court, ITC, and Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) proceedings.
Describe your practice area and what it entails.
Laura Ashley: Intellectual property litigation is a diverse practice area, encompassing patents, trade secrets, trademarks, and copyrights. The cases can be litigated in a variety of courts ranging from federal and state courts to proceedings before the USPTO and the ITC. The subject matter of the cases is highly variable and can include hardware, software, consumer electronics, medical devices, and pharmaceuticals.
Yungmoon: Intellectual property litigation at Kirkland broadly encompasses everything from patents and trade secrets to copyright, trademark, false advertising, and ancillary claims that go hand in hand with these assertions. I have been involved in every phase of a dispute, at times even before a dispute has become an official lawsuit filed in court. I’ve also litigated in nearly every type of venue you can think of, and I have even been involved in IP cases in international jurisdictions.
What types of clients do you represent?
Laura Ashley: Our clients range from large brand-name companies such as Samsung and Meta to startup-style companies. Most companies have some form of IP rights that they own or license, and therefore, IP litigation can arise almost anywhere; our clients are not limited to a specific industry.
Yungmoon: I have had the opportunity to represent companies that specialize in a wide swath of technologies, and I really love diving into the tech in every case. I have worked with clients that specialize in semiconductor fabrication, high-speed seed-planting technology, foot and ankle plates and screws, pharmaceutical medicines, video games, automobile grills, and spinal implants, among others.
What types of cases/deals do you work on?
Laura Ashley: I work primarily on patent and trade secret litigation in federal district court, although I have also worked on inter partes reviews before the PTAB and 337 investigations before the ITC. Because of Kirkland’s depth and breadth of cases across practice groups, I’ve also had the opportunity to work on cases outside IP litigation that have science or technology components. For example, I have worked on corporate investigations involving claims of scientific fraud and an antitrust matter arising out of an earlier patent case.
Yungmoon: I have represented both plaintiffs and defendants in all types of IP cases, and a big focus of my work is trial. For example, I have been on teams representing Motorola before the ITC in a patent infringement investigation, LivePerson in an AI chat software trade secret case, and Take-Two Interactive in copyright lawsuits brought by tattoo artists for tattoos shown on athletes in video games.
How did you choose this practice area?
Laura Ashley: During law school, I interviewed with a variety of firms across a broad range of practice areas. Ultimately, I landed on IP litigation because of the variety and complexity of the work. Mostly, I thought it would be a role that would introduce me to something new every day—whether a new issue of law, new field of science, or new case or client strategy—and that has turned out to be true.
Yungmoon: Prior to law school, I obtained a master’s in civil engineering and worked in structural engineering. When I enrolled in law school, IP law seemed like a natural path given my technical background. As soon as I started learning about patents, trade secrets, and copyright law, I knew it was the right fit.
What is a “typical” day like and/or what are some common tasks you perform?
Laura Ashley: With litigation, a “typical” day doesn’t really exist. Rather, my day-to-day activities depend mostly on the stage of the case. Prior to filing a complaint, a typical day might involve investigating and strategizing how to build your client’s case as well as documenting available evidence and drafting the complaint itself. During fact discovery, tasks can range from drafting written discovery requests and responses, resolving disputes with opposing counsel, preparing for and taking depositions, and generally building the factual record of the case. Expert discovery involves working closely with experts, assisting with drafting reports, and preparing them for and taking their depositions. Once discovery concludes, dispositive motion practice becomes the focus and involves a lot of legal research and writing. Pre-trial work includes preparing jury instructions, verdict forms, and deposition designations to be played at trial and preparing various other pre-trial materials under the court’s local rules. The life cycle of litigation requires attorneys to be adaptable and develop a variety of skill sets.
Yungmoon: No two days are alike. I could be on the road for a court hearing or a deposition, in which case I might work remotely out of a different Kirkland office or from a hotel conference room with a team or witness. If I’m not traveling, my day could consist of revising motions, strategizing with a team about upcoming discovery deadlines, or collaborating across practice groups to offer input as part of a global strategy. Trial requires court attendance followed by preparation in the evening for the next day of trial. It’s very demanding, but that’s part of the fun.
What training, classes, experience, or skills development would you recommend to someone who wishes to enter your practice area?
Laura Ashley: I would recommend anything that gives you an opportunity to develop critical writing and oral advocacy skills. Writing classes, substantive journal editing roles, clinics, and moot/mock court competitions are all excellent ways to practice skills that will translate to your role as a litigator. In terms of specific classes, Evidence and Administrative Law are very practical classes for litigation purposes generally, and—perhaps unsurprisingly—Patent, Trade Secret, and other IP classes are also helpful.
Yungmoon: Civil Procedure, Evidence, Trial Advocacy, Legal Writing, and moot court were valuable to me. Aside from having to know the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and Federal Rules of Evidence inside and out, Trial Advocacy and moot court were great opportunities to practice thinking and speaking on your feet. Of course, a huge part of what we do as trial lawyers is write; whether it’s discovery, motion practice, or pre-trial submissions, you must be able to communicate your position clearly and persuasively.
What is unique about your practice area at your firm?
Laura Ashley: One unique aspect of IP litigation at Kirkland is how often we go to trial. Our clients are hiring us for high-stakes, complex disputes, and while some cases do settle, many go all the way to trial. If you are looking for a place to get trial experience, Kirkland certainly offers that. Kirkland also offers its unique Kirkland Institute for Trial Advocacy pro-gram, where associates participate in a full mock trial. Actors are hired to play the witnesses, juries are brought in to give a verdict, and partners play the role of judge.
Yungmoon: Because of the breadth of practice groups at Kirkland, we can collaborate and offer full-service solutions to clients. For example, if a firm client is about to be acquired but is also a defendant in a pending patent litigation, we could work with the transactional team to evaluate the merits of the litigation and assist the client in framing the potential expo-sure for buyers. It’s an asset to have so many deep pockets of knowledge just a phone call away.
What are some typical tasks that a junior lawyer would perform in this practice area?
Laura Ashley: Generally, junior lawyers can expect to be involved in legal research, drafting briefs, drafting discovery requests and responses, preparing contentions, assisting with meet-and-confers, preparing witness outlines, and much more; it depends on the stage of the case and the team’s needs at that time. At Kirkland, most second- and third-year associates are also taking depositions and perhaps getting their first stand-up opportunities in court. Kirkland does not restrict experience or certain tasks by class year but rather gives opportunities based on what the firm feels each associate is ready and willing to take on.
What kinds of experiences can summer associates gain in this practice area at your firm?
Yungmoon: We give summer associates a real dose of assignments, which could involve things such as drafting portions of motions or deposition outlines. A focus for us is to make sure summer associates get to attend outward-facing events. We’ve recently brought summer associates to trial, where they help with witness preparation, research issues that arise at the trial site, and of course, attend trial. We also look for opportunities to attend hearings, depositions, and client meetings. Responsibility starts early at Kirkland, and there’s no better time to start diving in than as a summer associate.
What advice do you have for lawyers without technical or science backgrounds who want to practice in IP?
Laura Ashley: I don’t think you need a technical or science background to practice IP litigation. It may help on some cases, but in most situations, you are going to be exposed to science and technology that you don’t have experience with even with a technical background. Instead, it’s important to demonstrate a willingness and capacity to learn. If you are in law school, maybe this means joining a technology-centric journal, taking IP classes, or writing a law school note on an IP-related subject. In practice, ask to work on cases that sound interesting to you and volunteer to help with tasks even if it feels uncomfortable. I have found most people are willing to explain the subject matter and give people opportunities if you’re willing to put in the work to help yourself master the material over time.