Fennemore Law

I'll research Fennemore Law's profile and IP litigation practice before drafting.

Firm overview. Fennemore (long known as Fennemore Craig) is a Phoenix-headquartered, full-service Am Law 200 firm, not an IP boutique or a regional patent shop. It was founded in 1885 and is headquartered at 2394 E. Camelback Road, Phoenix, Arizona. The firm ranked No. 171 in the 2026 Am Law 200 (up from No. 178), on 20.8% revenue growth, and has grown aggressively through lateral combinations — roughly 273 lawyers in 17 offices as of early 2024, expanding through mergers in San Diego, Seattle, Boise (Sept. 2026) and elsewhere (Fennemore Am Law 200 release; The American Lawyer). A merger with Gallagher & Kennedy, effective Dec. 1, 2026, is reported to take the combined firm to roughly 800 lawyers and legal professionals (G&K announcement). Chambers USA recognizes Fennemore regionally (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Washington) but, based on the 2023–2025 releases reviewed, does not list the firm in any patent or IP litigation table (Chambers 2025 release).

IP litigation specialty. Fennemore's IP group is small relative to the firm but genuinely litigated. Two distinct technology profiles are visible. First, life sciences/Hatch-Waxman: Director Kathleen B. Carr's bio describes lead trial roles in cholesterol-lowering-drug, direct thrombin inhibitor, and diabetes-drug ANDA litigation, plus mechanical devices, mechanical seals, printing machinery, fax/photocopier technology, and business methods (Carr bio). Second, electronics and standards: Director Chris Z. Liu's bio lists semiconductors, 3G/4G/5G SEPs, GPS/navigation, medical devices and imaging, data encryption, MEMS, LEDs, tunable lasers, clean energy, and nuclear fusion, with ITC-337 and Federal Circuit work (Liu bio). Group chair Susan Stone Rosenfield is a registered patent attorney whose practice spans prosecution, trademark, copyright, and trade secrets across agriculture, pharma, software, solar, and telecommunications (Rosenfield bio). There is no evidence the firm is a Wi-Fi standards or SEP litigation leader of the kind seen at dedicated boutiques; that capability appears to rest largely on individual laterals.

Side preference. The tracked dataset shows 0 plaintiff-side and 1 defendant-side appearance, which is consistent with a portfolio-defense and operating-company orientation rather than NPE/PAE assertion work. That said, the sample is a single record and should not be over-read: the firm's own representative matters include both enforcing and defending patents (e.g., representing a patent holder in an Eastern District of Texas case and obtaining an $18M+ fee award for a pharmaceutical patent owner). Treat the defendant tilt as directional, not established.

Notable cases and outcomes. The one tracked matter is recorded in the dataset without a case name, so it cannot be cited. Publicly described results — all self-reported by the firm and not independently verified in the sources reviewed — include: a Hatch-Waxman cholesterol-lowering-drug litigation (nine related cases; seven settled, two won at trial, affirmed on Federal Circuit appeal); a direct thrombin inhibitor case won on all claims in a 156-page district court decision and affirmed by the Federal Circuit; a multibillion-dollar diabetes-drug ANDA defense won at district court and on appeal; and an ED Texas action involving 29 photocopier-technology patents that settled favorably. The Federal Circuit and district court opinions themselves were not located in this review, so these should be treated as descriptions rather than confirmed dispositions.

PTAB / IPR practice. There is a real but modest post-grant practice, driven by individuals rather than a firm-wide program. Liu reports representing clients in multiple IPRs (e-cigarette, map/GPS, security-camera technologies) and in a group of seven Federal Circuit appeals arising from the PTAB concerning 3G/4G/LTE technologies; Carr obtained denial of institution in all three IPR petitions filed against a patent owner in related Hatch-Waxman litigation. No public report (Patexia, Docket Navigator, or similar) was found quantifying the firm's overall IPR/PGR filing volume, so no scale figure should be asserted.

Key partners. Susan Stone Rosenfield is Chairperson of the IP and IP litigation practice group and a registered patent attorney (Best Lawyers "Lawyer of the Year," Patent Law, 2017 and 2022). Chris Z. Liu is a Director handling district court, ITC-337, PTAB, and Federal Circuit patent matters. Kathleen B. Carr is a Director in the IP group with the deepest Hatch-Waxman trial record (LMG Life Sciences Star, 2012–2025). Bruce E. Dahl (Denver) and Allison M. Hester (Denver, appellate/IP) round out the IP bench. Firm-wide, Chambers lists Timothy J. Berg (Arizona appellate) and Amy Abdo (Arizona general commercial litigation), but not as patent specialists.