Steven M. Pappas

Steven M. Pappas is a Director in the Electronics Practice Group at Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox, where his practice focuses on intellectual property litigation in federal district courts, appeals before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and post-grant proceedings before the USPTO Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB).

He specializes in patent matters involving complex technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), software applications, database technologies, operating systems, computer graphics, computer networking and communication protocols, cryptography, and financial technologies. His technical background includes prior experience as a financial technology consultant and a software engineer.

Mr. Pappas has extensive experience in post-grant proceedings, having served as counsel in over 70 PTAB proceedings, representing both patent owners and petitioners. Notably, he was part of the Sterne Kessler team that secured final written decisions finding all 56 challenged claims unpatentable in four inter partes reviews on behalf of Meta Platforms, Inc., concerning patents related to situational networks and targeted advertising. In district court litigation, his tracked appearance includes serving as lead counsel for the defendant, Mood Media, LLC, in Alpha Modus, Corp. v. Mood Media, LLC, a case involving AI-driven retail technologies that was resolved with prejudice in January 2026. He was recognized by Patexia as one of the “100 Best Performing Attorneys Representing Patent Owners – Inter Partes Review” in 2022.

Mr. Pappas earned his J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center, an M.S. in Computer Science from Columbia University, and a B.S.E. in Computer Science, cum laude, from the University of Michigan. He is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia, before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office.