Erik R. Puknys

Erik R. Puknys is a highly experienced patent litigator and a partner at Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, where he also serves as the Palo Alto office managing partner. His practice encompasses a broad array of technologies, including software, telecommunications, computer hardware, semiconductors, medical diagnostics, medical devices, and pharmaceuticals. He has particular experience in cases involving standard-essential patents (SEPs) and patent antitrust/misuse issues. Puknys began his career in intellectual property as a patent examiner at the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, joining Finnegan in 1994 and helping to open the firm's Silicon Valley office in 1997.

While his tracked appearances show a focus on plaintiff-side representation, notably in two cases for Uniloc USA, Inc. against Microsoft Corporation, his overall practice is balanced. Puknys has represented both plaintiffs and defendants for startups and Fortune 100 companies in district courts, the Federal Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court. For example, he secured a complete defense jury verdict for ABBYY and Lexmark in a patent and trade dress case involving optical character recognition technology, avoiding $260 million in alleged damages, a result affirmed by the Federal Circuit. He also obtained the reversal of a $45 million judgment against his client Ericsson.

Among his significant cases, Erik Puknys represented Uniloc USA, Inc. in its litigation against Microsoft Corporation concerning a software registration system. In this case, the Federal Circuit reinstated a jury's finding of infringement and patent validity for Uniloc but vacated the damages award, a decision that significantly influenced U.S. patent damages law regarding the "25% rule of thumb". He also successfully argued for client FOX Factory, convincing the Federal Circuit to vacate and remand adverse PTAB decisions, ultimately leading to a PTAB ruling that found all challenged claims unpatentable. Puknys's experience extends to post-grant proceedings, where he has been involved in challenging and defending patentability before the PTAB.

Puknys is admitted to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, in California and the District of Columbia, and before numerous federal appellate and district courts, including the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the U.S. Supreme Court. He earned his Juris Doctor, with high honors, from George Mason University School of Law in 1997.