Winston & Strawn

Winston & Strawn LLP: Patent Litigation Summary
April 30, 2026

Winston & Strawn LLP is a full-service international law firm headquartered in Chicago and founded in 1853. As a large "BigLaw" firm, it maintains a significant US footprint with offices in key litigation markets including California, Texas, New York, and Washington, D.C., as well as several locations in Europe and Asia. The firm consistently ranks among the top tiers of legal industry surveys; for 2026, Vault ranked Winston #39 in its list of most prestigious firms, and it is a perennial member of the AmLaw 100. The firm’s intellectual property group comprises over 100 attorneys, more than 60 of whom hold technical degrees.

The firm's patent litigation practice is nationally recognized for its work across a wide array of technologies, with particular expertise in the pharmaceutical, high-technology, and life sciences sectors. Winston has a market-leading practice in Hatch-Waxman (ANDA) litigation on behalf of generic pharmaceutical manufacturers, having appeared in over 100 such cases between 2018 and 2022. In the technology sector, the firm handles complex patent matters involving semiconductors, telecommunications, software, and medical devices. The firm also has a formidable International Trade Commission (ITC) practice, with over 80 years of collective experience in Section 337 investigations.

Winston & Strawn’s patent group predominantly represents defendants, a fact supported by the firm’s own reporting and the authoritative case data showing its single tracked appearance on the defense side. The firm describes itself as among the top three national patent defense firms by number of cases filed and appearances, according to Lex Machina data. Notable public victories include a complete defense jury verdict for Belkin against Fujitsu, a seminal § 101 win for SAP, and a noninfringement jury verdict for Teva in a case concerning Suboxone® tablets. The tracked case, Monticello Enterprises LLC v. Petco Animals Supply Stores Inc et al., is an ongoing matter in the Western District of Texas where recent court records show procedural motions underway. The lead counsel listed in that case, E. Danielle Williams, is no longer with the firm.

The firm maintains a highly active and well-regarded practice before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB), handling hundreds of inter partes review (IPR) and other post-grant proceedings for both patent owners and petitioners. Patexia's 2025 PTAB Intelligence Report recognized Winston's practice among the top 25 firms nationally. The firm's overall Intellectual Property practice is chaired by Dustin Edwards. Other prominent partners in the patent litigation group include Chicago-based trial lawyer George Lombardi and New York Managing Partner Krishnan Padmanabhan, who co-chairs the Technology, Media, and Telecom Industry Group.