Home /  Lawyers /  Andrei Iancu

    Andrei Iancu

    Partner

    Andrei Iancu Headshot Photo Portrait backdrop

    Los Angeles

    +1-310-712-6600

    Washington, D.C.

    +1-202-956-7500

    |

    iancua@sullcrom.com

    Email vCard

    Andrei Iancu is Co-Head of the Firm’s Intellectual Property and Technology Litigation Group and one of the leading voices in intellectual property law and innovation policy. He is a former Undersecretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), a position to which he was confirmed unanimously by the Senate. Andrei has decades of experience representing plaintiffs and defendants in IP matters across the technical and scientific spectra, including medical devices, genetic testing, therapeutics, the Internet, telephony, TV broadcasting, video game systems and computer peripherals. He represents clients in litigation and trials before the district courts, the U.S. International Trade Commission and the USPTO, the Federal Circuit and U.S. Supreme Court, and also counsels clients on obtaining, licensing, enforcing and defending against IP rights globally.

    During his tenure at the USPTO, Andrei served as the administration’s principal advisor on domestic and international IP issues and created the National Council for Expanding American Innovation, a group of industry, academia and government leaders tasked with helping the USPTO develop a comprehensive national strategy to broaden participation in the innovation ecosystem demographically, geographically and economically.

    Throughout his career, Andrei has been widely recognized for his achievements and contributions to IP law and policy. He has been inducted into the IAM Hall of Fame by Intellectual Asset Management and named one of the “50 Most Influential People in IP” by Managing IP, and has received the American Intellectual Property Law Association’s “Excellence Award,” the Intellectual Property Owners Education Foundation “IP Champion Award” for “his extraordinary leadership in advocating for the value of intellectual property to stimulate the progress of innovation,” and the IEEE-USA “Award for Distinguished Public Service” for “restoring balance and confidence in the U.S. patent system.” He has earned accolades from leading publications, including Chambers USA, The Best Lawyers in America, Daily Journal, California Lawyer, Los Angeles Business Journal, Legal 500 and many others.

    Andrei is a prolific writer and sought-after speaker, and has received a “Distinguished Legal Writing Award” at Law360’s Burton Awards and a Cicero Speechwriting Award in two separate categories, Public Policy and Technology, for his speech “The Future Keeps Coming.”

    Professional Activities

    • Chairman of the Board, UCLA Technology Development Group (TDG)
    • Co-founder and Chairman of the Board, Council for Innovation Promotion (C4IP)
    • Co-founder and Senior Adviser, Renewing American Innovation Project, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)

    Spotlight

    Andrei Iancu Featured in Daily Journal’s ‘Top Intellectual Property Lawyers 2025’

    Read More
    iancu_800x400_72dpi

    Andrei Iancu Authors Article for Stanford Social Innovation Review on AI Intellectual Property Protections

    Read More

    Andrei Iancu Wins Burton Award for Distinguished Legal Writing

    Read More
    blue-award-trophies

    S&C Prevails for Perfect Day in Patent Dispute

    Read More

    Andrei Iancu and Cooper Godfrey Author Law360 Article on Impact of Chevron Decision on U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

    Read More

    Experience

    • Kite Pharma v. Sloan Kettering Institute for Cancer Research (PTAB). Represented patent owner Sloan Kettering Institute for Cancer Research and its exclusive licensee, Juno Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing cellular immunotherapies for the treatment of cancer. Kite Pharma petitioned for inter partes review (IPR), seeking to invalidate all claims of U.S. Patent No. 7,446,190, titled “Nucleic Acids Encoding Chimeric T Cell Receptors.” In a complete victory for the clients, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) upheld the validity of all claims of the patent in a December 2016 final written decision.*
    • MAG Aerospace Industries, Inc. v. B/E Aerospace, Inc. (C.D. Cal.). Represented B/E Aerospace in defense of a patent infringement suit brought by MAG Aerospace Industries alleging infringement of three patents related to vacuum toilets used on aircraft. After a successful claim construction ruling, three summary judgments of noninfringement were granted in favor of B/E Aerospace, eliminating all of MAG’s infringement claims. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed in a unanimous precedential decision, after a hearing at which Andrei argued on B/E’s behalf.*
    • B/E Aerospace, Inc. v. MAG Aerospace Industries LLC (PTAB). Represented B/E Aerospace in three IPRs filed against a competitor in the field of aircraft water and waste systems. The USPTO invalidated all three of MAG’s patents, concluding that they were obvious based on multiple prior art references.*
    • Juno Therapeutics Inc. et al. v. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. et al (E.D. Penn.). Represented Juno in a patent and contract dispute surrounding chimeric antigen receptor (CAR T-cell) therapies for the treatment of certain forms of cancer. The case settled favorably after several years of litigation, with Juno receiving upfront and milestone payments from Novartis, as well as ongoing royalties.*
    • Ariosa Diagnostics, Inc. v. Sequenom, Inc. (N.D. Cal.). Represented Ariosa Diagnostics in patent litigation against Sequenom. On Ariosa’s early summary judgment motion, the court invalidated Sequenom’s patent because it attempted to cover a natural phenomenon. The decision gave Ariosa a complete victory, allowing the diagnostics company to continue selling its popular Harmony™ Prenatal Test – an affordable, highly accurate, non-invasive blood test to determine fetal chromosomal abnormalities. This decision was affirmed by the Federal Circuit in a precedential opinion.*
    • Motorola Mobility Inc. v. TiVo Inc./TiVo Inc. v. Cisco Systems Inc. (E.D. Tex.). Represented TiVo Inc. in patent litigation over DVR technology against Motorola Mobility and Cisco Systems. Shortly before the start of trial, Motorola and Cisco agreed to pay $490 million to TiVo to resolve the litigation.*

    • TiVo v. Verizon (E.D. Tex.). Represented TiVo in a patent infringement suit against Verizon accusing the company of infringing three of TiVo’s DVR technology patents. Shortly before the start of trial, Verizon agreed to provide TiVo with total compensation worth at least $250.4 million.*
    • TiVo v. AT&T (E.D. Tex.). Represented TiVo in a suit against AT&T, alleging that AT&T’s U-verse products and services infringed three of TiVo’s patents covering DVR technology. AT&T launched a counter-suit in California accusing TiVo DVRs of violating three AT&T patents. Just days before a trial on TiVo’s patents, AT&T agreed to pay TiVo a minimum of $215 million, plus additional fees in case AT&T’s DVR subscriber base exceeds certain levels.*
    • TiVo Inc. v. EchoStar Communications, Inc. (E.D. Tex.). Represented TiVo in a seven-year patent infringement suit related to pioneering digital video recorder (DVR) technology that resulted in awards for TiVo totaling more than $104 million in damages, interest, sanctions and attorneys’ fees. The victories included a contempt order which was affirmed by the Federal Circuit and, ultimately, an additional $500 million settlement.*
    • St. Jude Medical v. Access Closure, Inc. (W.D. Ark.). Represented St. Jude Medical in a patent case alleging infringement of St. Jude’s patents relating to vascular closure devices. The jury returned a verdict of willful patent infringement and awarded St. Jude $27.1 million in damages.*
    • Net2Phone v. eBay and Skype (D.N.J.); eBay v. IDT and Net2Phone (W.D. Ark.). Represented eBay and Skype in several patent infringement lawsuits related to internet communications, including VoIP (voice over internet protocol) and calling card technology. Net2Phone first filed suit in New Jersey. eBay subsequently filed suit in Arkansas against Net2Phone and its parent IDT. Although filed two years later, eBay’s case in Arkansas was scheduled for trial well before Net2Phone’s case in New Jersey. Both cases settled successfully shortly before trial.*
    • Peer Communications v. eBay and Skype (E.D. Tex.). Represented defendants eBay and Skype in a patent infringement suit related to internet communications, including VoIP (voice over internet protocol). The plaintiff was a subsidiary of Acacia Research Corp. After claim construction, the district court entered judgment for eBay and Skype based on patent invalidity and dismissed the case with prejudice. The judgment was affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, where Andrei argued on eBay and Skype’s behalf.*
    • Immersion Corp. v. Sony Computer Entertainment (N.D. Cal.). Represented Immersion in a patent infringement suit related to tactile feedback technology for computer simulations. A jury found all of Immersion’s asserted claims to be valid and infringed and awarded Immersion $82 million in damages.*
    • Grayzel v. St. Jude Medical (D.N.J.). Represented defendant St. Jude Medical in a patent infringement suit related to vascular closure devices. The district court found all asserted claims to be invalid and dismissed the case in St. Jude’s favor. The judgment was affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, where Andrei argued on St. Jude’s behalf.*
    • Edwards Lifesciences v. St. Jude Medical (C.D. Cal.). Represented defendant St. Jude Medical in a patent infringement suit on four patents related to annuloplasty rings and the treatment of animal valves for implantation in humans. The case was successfully settled after several wins by St. Jude on summary judgment.*
    • Xerox v. Hewlett-Packard (W.D.N.Y.). Represented defendant Hewlett-Packard in a number of complex cases related to printing technology. The parties settled after a district court found on summary judgment that Hewlett-Packard does not infringe a Xerox patent.*
    • Michelson v. Wright Medical Technology, Inc. (C.D. Cal.). Represented plaintiff Michelson in a breach of contract case related to technology on spinal implants. The case settled favorably.*

    *Denotes representations undertaken prior to joining S&C.

    Recent Speaking Engagements

    • “Global IP Trends,” Danish Patent & Trademark Office’s IP Conference (April 10, 2025)
    • “Future Forward: The Impact of Pending Legislation and New Administration Policies on Global IP,” “IP as a Catalyst for Business Innovation and Success,” BPIP Annual Conference (March 24, 2025)
    • “The Hatch-Waxman Act at 40: Reflections on Past, Present, and Future,” ACI’s 20th Paragraph IV Disputes Conference (co-chair) (April 25, 2024)
    • “Top-Line Issues in Intellectual Property – An Exchange Among Former IP Office Heads,” “Assessing Congressional Engagement with the U.S. IP System – A First-Ever Congressional Member-Level Scorecard” and “Leveraging IP to Create Value,” Best Practices in Intellectual Property annual conference (April 8–9, 2024)
    • Keynote Speaker, 26th Annual Symposium on Intellectual Property Law and Policy, University of Akron School of Law (March 25, 2024)
    • 102nd Annual Dinner in Honor of the Federal Judiciary ‘Day of Dinner’ Luncheon CLE, New York Intellectual Property Law Association (March 22, 2024)
    • “Achieving Success in Technology Transfer: A Global Perspective,” Association of University Technology Managers Annual Meeting (February 18–21, 2024)
    • “Innovation not Regulation,” Cipher Vision Podcast, LexisNexis (December 1, 2023)
    • Featured Speaker, 67th Annual Intellectual Property, Information & Privacy Law Conference, University of Illinois Chicago School of Law (November 10, 2023)
    • Panelist, “Pending Patent Legislation: What You Need to Know,” Patent CLE Seminar, New York Intellectual Property Law Association (November 8, 2023)
    • “Innovation Forum on Capitol Hill,” Penn State Dickinson Law (October 25, 2023)
    • “TopIP Fireside Chat,” RPX (October 20, 2023)
    • “The Importance of Innovation,” Keynote speaker, US Inventor Annual Conference (October 20, 2023)
    • “Workshop: How the Different Policy Orientations Influence the Patent & Litigation Eco-system,” LES (October 17, 2023)
    • “Fireside Chat: Foundations of Change: Evolution of American Innovation and the Role of Intellectual Property Standards,” LES (October 16, 2023)
    • Romanian Bar Association (October 16, 2023)
    • “SEP Licensing & the European Courts: What Are They Doing Right?,” C-IP2 Annual Fall Conference (October 12, 2023)
    • “39th Annual HIPLA/UHLC-IPIL Fall IP Institute,” Keynote speaker, University of Houston Law Center (UHLC) (October 6, 2023)
    • “IP Effects on Economic Development and National Security,” Stanford University (October 4, 2023)
    • “The Global IP State of the Union in Theory and Practice,” Keynote speaker, Center for Intellectual Property (CIP) Forum (October 3, 2023)
    • “IP, Innovation, and Re-Globalization,” Center for Intellectual Property (CIP) Forum (October 2, 2023)
    • “3rd Annual Live Meeting,” Keynote speaker, IPWatchdog (September 18, 2023)
    • “Opening Session: Inside View of IP and Government,” Intellectual Property Owners Association Annual Meeting (September 10, 2023)
    • “IAM Live Patent Transactions” IAM (September 7, 2023)
    • “Streamlining Trademark Prosecution: Causes for Delay & Suggestions for Improvement, Including Trademark Modernization Act,” OCBA Intellectual Property & Technology Law Section Meeting (June 19, 2023)
    • “A Fireside Chat on the Importance of IP,” Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) Congressional Staff Event (June 1, 2023)
    • “Can America Win the AI Race? The Key Role of Intellectual Property Rights with Andrei Iancu,” The Vivek Show podcast (May 9, 2023)
    • “The Innovation Race: IP and U.S. Global Leadership, China and Beyond,” 2023 IP Awareness Summit (May 2, 2023)
    • “CSIS Renewing American Innovation Celebrates World IP Day,” Center for Strategic and International Studies webinar (April 27, 2023)
    • “Impact of Changing IP Policy on the Innovation Ecosystem,” Stanford Byers Center for Biodesign (April 10, 2023)
    • “IP in the AI Era: Impact and Challenges,” BPIP Annual Conference (March 20, 2023)
    • “The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on U.S. Economic and National Security,” Artificial Intelligence Masters (March 8, 2023)
    • “What to Know If It’s Your First Rodeo in Patent Monetization,” AUTM Annual Meeting (February 22, 2023)
    • “Is China Set to Pass the US as the World’s Lead Innovators?,” The Lars Larson Show (November 15, 2022)
    • “Competition and Innovation Policy for Tomorrow,” The Federalist Society’s National Lawyers Convention (November 10, 2022)
    • “The Law and US Global Competitiveness: A Conversation with Andrei Iancu,” International Legal Finance Association’s Annual Conference (October 24, 2022)
    • “Patents, High-Tech, and the Startup Nation: An Inside Look at the Changing Landscape,” American Technion Society (September 14, 2022)
    • “Where Do We Go From Here on Patent Eligibility After American Axle?,” IPWatchdog Live (September 12, 2022)
    • “Save the Inventor: Fighting for Invention and Innovation – Past, Present, and Future,” Inventing America Conference (July 26, 2022)
    • “Developments in Intellectual Property Regulation,” Société de Chimie Industrielle (July 20, 2022)
    • “Intellectual Property: A Key Drive for Competitiveness of the US Economy,” Rutgers Professional Science Master’s Program (June 21, 2022)
    • “The Future of Patents in a Conscious-Led Economy,” National Academy of Inventors (June 14, 2022)
    • “View from the Pantheon,” IPBC Global 2022 Conference (June 13, 2022)
    • “The United States, China, IP: The New Cold War?,” 20th Annual Rocky Mountain Intellectual Property & Technology Law Institute (June 2, 2022)
    • “From the University to the Market: Why IP Saves Patients’ Lives,” Keynote speaker, Los Angeles Bioscience Ecosystem Summit (May 26, 2022)
    • “The Never-Ending Fight Over What is Fair, Reasonable & Non-Discriminatory (FRAND),” IPWatchdog Patent Litigation Masters (May 23, 2022)
    • “Trade Secrets in the IP system: Confidentiality and its Limits,” Keynote speaker, WIPO Symposium on Trade Secrets and Innovation (May 23, 2022)
    • “Innovation Policy: Using Government Regulation to Spur Innovation,” USC Gould School of Law Intellectual Property Institute (May 10, 2022)
    • “18th Annual IP SpringPosium Conference,” Keynote speaker, Georgia Intellectual Property Alliance (April 29, 2022)
    • “The Role of IP in Facilitating Global Development and Production of COVID-19 Vaccines and Therapeutics,” Keynote speaker, Center for Strategic & International Studies (April 27, 2022)
    • “Draft SEP Policy Statement,” The Federalist Society (March 14, 2022)

    Recent Publications

    • “Encouraging Human Creativity in the AI-Powered Future,” Stanford Social Innovation Review, co-author (January 29, 2025)
    • “5G and Beyond: Intellectual Property and Competition Policy in the Internet of Things,” Cambridge University Press, foreword (2024)
    • “Banning Non-Compete Agreements Hurts US Companies and Workers,” The Hill, co-author (March 23, 2023)
    • “China Wants to Replace the U.S. As the World Leader in Science,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, co-author (February 13, 2023)
    • “Opinion: Protect the Value of American Invention,” Deseret News, co-author (November 12, 2022)
    • “Biden’s Cancer Moonshot Will Miss Without Intellectual Property,” The Hill, co-author (November 9, 2022)
    • “Scapegoating Patents Won’t Lower Drug Prices,” Bloomberg Law, co-author (October 17, 2022)
    • “To Get More Women And Minority Inventors, We Need Data,” International Business Times, co-author (May 29, 2022)
    • “America’s 21st Century Sputnik Moment,” RealClear Policy, co-author (April 14, 2022)
    • “SEP Draft Policy Imperils US Investment In Innovation,” Law360, co-author (April 6, 2022)
    • “The Solution to Chinese Courts’ Increasingly Aggressive Overreach,” RealClear Policy, co-author (March 30, 2022)
    • “Lawmakers Want to Weaken U.S. Patents That Made New Anti-COVID Pills Possible. We Should Do Everything Possible to Protect Them,” Fortune, co-author (March 4, 2022)
    • “The Shot Heard around the World: The Strategic Imperative of U.S. Covid-19 Vaccine Diplomacy,” Center for Strategic & International Studies Report, co-author (November 17, 2021)
    • “Why Does the FDA Want to Stop Improving Medicines via Patent ‘Areas of Concern’?,” STAT, co-author (November 8, 2021)
    • “Biden Administration Should Preserve Strong Patent Protection for Standardized Technology,” RealClear Policy, co-author (November 3, 2021)
    • “Patent ‘Holdouts’ Are Sapping U.S. Innovation | Opinion,” Newsweek (October 18, 2021)
    • “U.S. Intellectual Property Is Critical to National Security,” New York Law Journal, co-author (July 6, 2021)
    • “No Evidence That Patents Slow Access to Vaccines,” STAT (April 13, 2021)
    • “The Role of the Courts in Shaping Patent Law and Policy,” Berkeley Technology Law Journal (Vol. 34:333, 2019)

    Rankings and Recognitions

    • Recognized as a Litigation Star by Benchmark Litigation (2025)
    • Recognized by Chambers USA in California Intellectual Property – Patent Litigation (2024)
    • Recognized by The Best Lawyers in America in Litigation – Intellectual Property (2024)
    • Recognized with “Law360 Distinguished Legal Writing Award” at the Burton Awards (2023)
    • Selected as one of the Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators in America (2023–2025)
    • Received the Paul Michel Award, IPWatchdog (2022)
    • Selected as one of the “Legal Visionaries” by the Los Angeles Times (2021–2023)
    • Listed as a “Notable Practitioner” in Managing Intellectual Property’s IP Stars (2021–2022)
    • Inducted into the IAM Hall of Fame by Intellectual Asset Management (2021)
    • Honored with the 2020 IEEE-USA “Award for Distinguished Public Service” for “his achievement of restoring balance and confidence in the U.S. patent system” (2021)
    • Included in the Southern California Super Lawyers list (2008–2018, 2023)
    • Received the “Excellence Award” from the American Intellectual Property Law Association (2020)
    • Named one of the “50 Most Influential People in IP” by Managing IP, recognized for “having changed the mood at the USPTO” (2018–2020)
    • Received the Cicero Speechwriting Award in two separate categories (Public Policy and Technology) for his speech “The Future Keeps Coming,” and received honorable mention for his speech “Innovation and Opportunity” (2020)
    • Received the “IP Champion Award” from the Intellectual Property Owners Education Foundation for “his extraordinary leadership in advocating for the value of intellectual property to stimulate the progress of innovation” (2019)
    • Selected as one of BTI’s “Client Service All-Stars” (2017)
    • Recognized as one of the “Most Influential Intellectual Property Lawyers in Los Angeles” by the Los Angeles Business Journal (2017)
    • Named an “IP Star” by Managing Intellectual Property (2013–2017)
    • Honored as “Lawyer of the Year” for firms with 75–125 attorneys by the Los Angeles Business Journal (2016)
    • Named to the California “Top 100 Attorneys” list (2011–2014) and among the “Top IP Litigators” by the Daily Journal (2008, 2010–2017)
    • Selected as one of the “Top 100 Southern California Super Lawyers” (2014)
    • Received the “California Lawyer Attorney of the Year” (CLAY) award by California Lawyer magazine (2013)
    • Awarded the 36th Annual Rossman Award from the Patent and Trademark Office Society (2009)
    • Named to the “Top 20 California Attorneys Under 40” list by the Daily Journal (2006)

    News

    Publications, Videos and Podcasts

    Credentials

    Education

    • UCLA School of Law, J.D., 1996
    • University of California, Los Angeles, M.S., 1990
    • University of California, Los Angeles, B.S., 1989

    Bar Admissions

    • District of Columbia
    • California

    Related Practices