William R. Peterson

William R. Peterson is a distinguished attorney specializing in patent litigation and appellate practice, who currently serves as the 10th Solicitor General of Texas. Prior to this role, he was a partner at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP, where he also co-chaired the firm's appellate practice. His practice has focused on complex intellectual property disputes, particularly appeals before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the U.S. Supreme Court.

Leveraging a background as a former software engineer with an engineering degree from the California Institute of Technology, Mr. Peterson handles technically sophisticated matters. His experience spans diverse technology areas, including pharmaceutical method-of-treatment claims, as evidenced by his role in the significant Praxair decision, and display technologies, such as in the case of LG Display Co., Ltd. v. Tianma Microelectronics Co., Ltd. et al., where he represented the defendant. His litigation record indicates a preference for defending companies against patent infringement claims or challenging patent validity to enable competition.

Among his notable achievements, Mr. Peterson prevailed before the Federal Circuit in a hard-fought battle that facilitated generic competition for a critical pharmaceutical drug, a victory that earned him recognition as a "Litigator of the Week" by Law.com. He has also been counsel of record for petitioners seeking writs of certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court from Federal Circuit decisions, including matters originating from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB).

Mr. Peterson earned his J.D. from The University of Texas School of Law in 2008, following his undergraduate studies at Caltech. He is admitted to the State Bar of Texas and is board certified in civil appellate law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Earlier in his career, he served as a law clerk to Justice Clarence Thomas of the U.S. Supreme Court and Chief Judge Edith Hollan Jones of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.