Christopher P. McNett

I'll research this attorney before drafting.

Good background. Let me verify key case outcomes and disambiguate.

Christopher P. McNett — Patent Litigation Practice Summary

Specialty / focus areas. McNett is a patent litigator whose docket centers on electronics and telecommunications: 4G/LTE wireless standards and VoLTE (Wi-LAN, Optis), wireless charging (Mojo Mobility), flash memory (Vervain), semiconductor technology (TSMC, Ericsson), and mobile software/memory systems. Firm profiles also list computer security and web technologies. His technical background supports this focus — he worked as a software engineer at Palm and as an undergraduate at Microsoft before law school, and he holds a master's in computer science from Stanford. Client work includes some non-telecom matters (e.g., Hillman Group, key-duplication technology), but the practice skews heavily toward wireless/electronics patents.

Side preference. The authoritative tracked data shows a single appearance, on the plaintiff side, as trial counsel — consistent with the public record, which is dominated by patent-owner representations: Wi-LAN, Optis, Mojo Mobility, Vervain, SEVEN Networks, and Express Mobile. His firm bio states he has litigated "both as plaintiff and defendant," and he has also represented operating companies on defense (e.g., TSMC against Semiconductor Connections). On balance, the verifiable record is substantially more plaintiff/patent-owner weighted than defense weighted.

Firm context. McKool Smith is his only law firm affiliation surfaced in the public record, where he is a Principal with offices in Washington, D.C. and New York. No prior firm history was found; his pre-law roles (Palm, Microsoft, patent licensing and acquisitions at Intellectual Ventures) were industry positions rather than law practice. He also serves as a Professorial Lecturer in Law at George Washington University.

Notable matters and outcomes. He was a trial-team member on Wi-LAN v. Apple (S.D. Cal.), which produced a $145.1M verdict in 2018 and an $85.2M damages-retrial verdict in 2020; the Federal Circuit affirmed infringement in 2022 but vacated the damages award and remanded for a further damages trial (Apple Inc. v. Wi-LAN Inc., 25 F.4th 960). He is listed on the Optis team in Optis Wireless Technology v. Apple (E.D. Tex.), which yielded $506.2M (2020) and $300M (2021) verdicts, both later vacated by the Federal Circuit, followed by a defense verdict for Apple at the third trial in February 2026. He was on the McKool Smith team that won a $192.1M willful-infringement verdict for Mojo Mobility against Samsung in September 2024 (E.D. Tex.). Other listed matters include SEVEN Networks' suits against Apple, LG, and Motorola, Vervain's flash-memory case against Micron and Western Digital, an ITC Section 337 matter for Ericsson (337-TA-1254), and a non-infringement judgment for TSMC. Public reporting credits him as part of teams obtaining over $1 billion in patent verdicts and settlements, though that figure comes from firm/practice-directory copy rather than independent verification.

PTAB / IPR experience. He appears regularly in PTAB proceedings. He was named backup counsel on the patent owner's power of attorney in IPR2020-01394 (USPTO Reg. No. 64,489), and firm announcements credit his team with defeating institution in 16 of Samsung's 18 IPR petitions against Mojo Mobility and with a 10-for-10 discretionary-denial sweep for Vervain against Phison and Kingston.

Bar / education. J.D., Harvard Law School (2014); M.S., Computer Science, Stanford (2006); B.S., Computer Engineering, Purdue (2003). Clerkships with Judge Jimmie V. Reyna (Fed. Cir.) and Judge S. James Otero (C.D. Cal.). Admitted in California, New York, and D.C., plus the USPTO patent bar and the Federal Circuit. Selected to Benchmark Litigation's "40 & Under" list (2024) and Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch (2026).

Note: The tracked case list provided only one entry, labeled "Untitled case," so the case-specific detail above is drawn from firm bios, practice directories, court opinions, and legal-press coverage rather than the structured list.