Erika Arner

Erika Harmon Arner is a highly regarded patent litigation attorney and the Chair of Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, LLP, where she has spent her entire legal career since joining as a summer associate in 1999. Her practice centers on patent office trials, including inter partes reviews (IPRs) and post-grant reviews (PGRs), district court litigation, and appeals to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. She has particular expertise in electronic technologies, computer software, and patent-eligibility jurisprudence, having represented petitioners in the landmark Bilski v. Kappos case before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Ms. Arner is a recognized leader in PTAB practice, having been named PTAB Litigator of the Year by Managing Intellectual Property and consistently ranking among the top female attorneys in this field. She has served as lead counsel in over 200 PTAB trials and has argued sixteen times before the Federal Circuit, contributing to over 100 Federal Circuit appeals. She represents both patent challengers and patent owners, demonstrating versatility in her approach, though her tracked case, Proxense, LLC v. Apple, shows her as lead counsel for the defendant.

Her notable successes include leading and winning the very first PTAB trial, successfully cancelling all claims asserted by iRobot against SharkNinja in district court litigation through PTAB proceedings, and securing affirmances for BMW in Federal Circuit appeals related to vehicle remote start technology and a covenant-not-to-sue for BMW against Arigna Technology. She also achieved a unanimous affirmance at the Federal Circuit of a PTAB obviousness determination for Incyte against Concert Pharmaceuticals.

Erika Arner holds a B.S. in Computer Science from the College of William and Mary (1993) and a J.D., cum laude, from Washington and Lee University School of Law (1999). She is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia and Virginia, before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and Fourth Circuit, and the Supreme Court of the United States. She is also a past president of the PTAB Bar Association.