Francis DiGiovanni

I'll research this attorney's background and verify the tracked cases.

Let me verify the tracked cases and check for IPR/PTAB experience.

Let me confirm the Federal Circuit outcome and Metrom case status.

Francis "Frank" DiGiovanni — patent litigation practice summary

Focus areas. DiGiovanni is an intellectual property litigator and registered patent attorney based in Faegre Drinker's Wilmington, Delaware office. He is a trained mechanical engineer (B.S.M.E., Bucknell, 1987) and firm and directory profiles describe his practice as spanning the mechanical, electrical, and chemical arts — Chambers USA (Delaware IP, Band 2) highlights particular expertise in the chemical and electronics sectors, while IAM Patent 1000 has described him as "an excellent choice for patent owners in the mechanical engineering sphere" and a good fit for "multi-layered cases in which patent, antitrust and other issues intersect." His tracked docket reflects that range: consumer wireless audio (Earin AB v. Sennheiser), rail signaling/ultra-wideband technology (the Siemens Mobility v. Metrom Rail family), and a Hatch-Waxman-style pharmaceutical matter (Supernus v. Aurobindo). He also handles trademark and trade secret/unfair competition work.

Side preference. The tracked dataset is small and entirely defense-side — four appearances, all as counsel for defendants, three as lead counsel. That skew is a function of the limited sample, not his overall practice: his own firm bio states he represents "defendants and plaintiffs" and has won plaintiff-side verdicts, and IAM has noted he is "proficient on both sides of the 'v.'" On the evidence available, he is best characterized as a defense-leaning litigator who does take plaintiff-side work rather than an NPE/PAE prosecutor.

Firm context. He has spent his career at the firm now known as Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP, which was formed by the 2020 combination of Drinker Biddle & Reath (where he was co-chair of the IP group) and Faegre Baker Daniels. All three of his firm-attributed tracked appearances are under the Faegre Drinker name. There is no indication in the sources reviewed that he has been in-house.

Notable matters and outcomes. Verified results from his firm bio and directory sources include Parker-Hannifin Corp. v. Champion Laboratories (N.D. Ohio) — a seven-day jury trial finding literal and DOE infringement and willfulness, with roughly $6.5M in lost profits plus about $3.3M in enhanced damages, an injunction, an exceptional-case finding, and fees; a related Parker v. Champion bench trial on damages (approximately $1M) notable for a reasonable royalty on provisional-rights-period sales; ThermoLife Int'l v. Vital Pharmaceuticals (S.D. Cal.) — a five-day bench trial invalidating all 17 asserted claims across four patents, followed by an exceptional-case and fee award; and Brookins v. Parker-Hannifin (D.N.D.) — dismissal on standing. On the tracked docket, his most prominent matter is the Siemens Mobility, Inc. v. Metrom Rail, LLC dispute (D. Del., later transferred/severed to S.D.N.Y.), a rail collision-avoidance case in which the district court granted in part the defense motions to dismiss and the litigation was stayed pending IPR. The Earin v. Sennheiser matter was resolved by stipulation of dismissal in April 2024.

PTAB / IPR experience. He appears to have meaningful PTAB exposure, though the public record connecting him personally to specific proceedings is thinner than for his district court work. His name appears as counsel in IPR2019-00317/-00320 (U.S. Patent 10,096,207), and the Siemens/Metrom dispute generated a substantial IPR series (including IPR2023-00468/-00470 and IPR2024-00947), in which the petitioners — his client's side — obtained final written decisions invalidating the challenged claims of the '227 and '131 patents; the Federal Circuit (No. 24-2223) rejected patent owner Metrom's secondary-considerations arguments on appeal. Note that PTAB filings of record in that series list other counsel (e.g., Thatcher Rahmeier for Ground Transportation Systems USA) rather than DiGiovanni himself, so his direct participation in those IPRs is not independently confirmed.

Bar / education (sourced). J.D., University of Pittsburgh School of Law, 1993; B.S.M.E., Bucknell University, 1987. Admitted in Delaware (1993), E.D. Tex. (2010), U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (2000), and the U.S. Supreme Court (2002); registered to practice before the USPTO (Reg. No. 37310).

One caveat: because the tracked list contains only four appearances and clusters around a single defendant-side family, the plaintiff/defendant split above should not be read as a complete picture of his docket.