Alexander Middleton

Alexander Middleton is Special Counsel in the Intellectual Property Practice Group at Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton, operating from the firm's New York office. His practice is dedicated to handling complex patent disputes for high-technology companies. He has extensive experience across various technical fields, including cellular and wireless communications, video coding, networking, computer systems and software, network architecture and security, mobile payment systems, imaging systems, and GPS technology.

Middleton primarily represents operating companies in patent litigation. His tracked appearance as counsel for Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. in Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. v. Headwater Research LLC exemplifies this focus. In this matter, Headwater Research LLC, identified as a non-practicing entity (NPE), asserted patents related to mobile device data management and wireless communication optimization technologies against Samsung.

This dispute saw a significant jury verdict of $278.8 million against Samsung in the Eastern District of Texas in April 2025 for infringement of Headwater's patents, covering wireless communication improvements such as Wi-Fi speed and device battery life. However, the overall litigation between Samsung and Headwater Research LLC was ultimately resolved through a confidential settlement and a dismissal with prejudice in October 2025. Other related proceedings also included a noninfringement verdict for Samsung in a different case and a successful patent revocation for Samsung in the UPC Dusseldorf. Middleton's experience also includes litigating before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB).