Michelle Aspen

Michelle Aspen is a patent litigator with extensive experience in intellectual property disputes, particularly focusing on invalidating patents asserted by non-practicing entities (NPEs). Her practice spans a wide array of technology areas, including consumer products, telecommunications systems, content delivery, cloud communications, Internet-of-Things, transactional software, cybersecurity, semiconductor circuits, networking devices, video coding, 3GPP, and Wi-Fi, with a specific emphasis on standard essential patents (SEPs) in video coding and Wi-Fi fields.

Aspen primarily operates on the side of challenging patents, reflecting her tenure as in-house counsel and Senior Patent Counsel at Unified Patents. While the case data lists 9 "plaintiff" appearances for Unified Patents and 1 "defendant" appearance, Unified Patents' organizational mission involves proactively challenging patents owned by NPEs to protect its members, effectively placing Aspen's work on the side of operating companies defending against assertions. Her prior experience includes practicing at Erise IP, and she is currently a Senior Counsel at Shook, Hardy & Bacon.

Her career highlights include successfully arguing at the Federal Circuit and supervising appellate counsel. She has been involved in significant PTAB proceedings, such as Unified Patents PTAB Data v. Perceptive Automata LLC, and has represented Unified Patents in numerous ex parte reexaminations, including those challenging patents related to groupware (AK Meeting), IoT devices (Cloud Systems HoldCo IP), and lockstep processors for automotive applications (Foras Technologies). Aspen is also engaged in patent policy, having led efforts to draft amicus briefs, submit comments on proposed regulations, and analyze trends in litigation finance and standards licensing. Notably, she co-authored an amicus brief at the Federal Circuit in In re SanDisk Technologies, Inc. and Western Digital Technologies, Inc. concerning discretionary denials and the statutory authority of the USPTO Director.

Aspen is highly active in post-grant proceedings before the United States Patent and Trademark Office, where she boasts a high success rate. Her expertise in Inter Partes Reviews (IPRs) and other post-grant challenges is a cornerstone of her practice. She earned her J.D. from the University of Colorado Law School in 2016, where she gained experience in patent prosecution, and holds a B.S. in Environmental Engineering from Johns Hopkins University. She is admitted to practice in Colorado and Maryland, before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court, and is a member of the PTAB Bar Association.