The 2024 Sedona Conference on Global Intellectual Property Litigation

Date: 
Tuesday, March 5, 2024 - 8:30am to Wednesday, March 6, 2024 - 1:00pm

Location:

The Charles Hotel
Munich, Germany

The 2024 Sedona Conference on Global Intellectual Property Litigation will be held at The Charles Hotel in Munich, Germany on Tuesday-Wednesday, 5-6 March 2024. A welcome reception will be held in the evening of Monday, 4 March, from 17:00-19:00 hours.

Developments in the legal landscapes in the U.S., Europe, and Asia are creating new risks and opportunities for IP litigation. Rapidly evolving case law, new guidelines from national competition authorities and other institutions, and legislative initiatives constantly shape this complex framework for plaintiffs and defendants. Within the European Union, the Unified Patent Court came into existence on 1 June 2023. We will have exactly 9 months of experience with the Unified Patent Court when we hold our 2024 Conference on Global IP Litigation.

This Conference – held in the home of the second section of the Central Division of the Unified Patent Court -- will continue the in-depth dialogue from our 2023 Conference on Global Intellectual Property Litigation. The Conference will be informed by The Sedona Conference’s Working Group 9 (Patent Damages & Remedies), 10 (Patent Litigation Best Practices) and 12 (Trade Secrets) published non-partisan consensus commentaries addressing tipping point issues in global IP litigation.

We have obtained very favorable hotel group room rates of EUR 300 (single occupancy) and EUR 330 (double occupancy) per night for a block of rooms at The Charles Hotel on the evenings of 4 and 5 March. The group rates include breakfast. The group rates are available for up to three nights preceding and three nights following the conference, subject to availability of Classic Rooms. The Charles Hotel will be holding the block of rooms until 4 January 2024, after which any remaining rooms will be released for sale to the general public. After 4 January, rooms are on a space available only basis. Accordingly, we recommend that you register for the Conference and reserve your hotel room early to ensure availability.

Come join us in Munich and contribute to the dialogue on managing global IP litigation!

Co-Chairs

O'Melveny & Myers LLP

San Francisco, CA, USA

Winston & Strawn LLP

Washington, DC, USA

Jones Day

Hong Kong

Tensegrity Law Group LLP

San Francisco, CA, USA

Arnold & Porter

London, United Kingdom

Meissner Bolte Part mbB

Munich, Germany

Confirmed Faculty

U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas

Waco, TX, USA

O'Melveny & Myers LLP

San Francisco, CA, USA

USITC

Washington, DC, USA

Goodwin Procter LLP

Redwood City, CA, USA

Ericsson

Dallas, TX, USA

Ericsson

Plano, TX, USA

Nokia Solutions and Networks

Espoo, Finland

Winston & Strawn LLP

Houston, TX, USA

Winston & Strawn LLP

Washington, DC, USA

European Patent Office
Huawei

Dallas, TX, USA

GLS Capital, LLC
Paul Weiss

New York, NY, USA

Tensegrity Law Group LLP

McLean, VA, USA

Jones Day

Hong Kong

Hoyng Rokh Monegier

Paris, France

TM Financial Forensics, LLC

San Francisco, CA, USA

Bardehle Pagenberg

Munich, Germany

Bird & Bird LLP

London, United Kingdom

Paul Hastings LLP

Washington, DC, USA

Tensegrity Law Group LLP

San Francisco, CA, USA

Meissner Bolte

Munich, Germany

Licks Attorneys

Rio de Janeiro, BR

Arnold & Porter

London, United Kingdom

WilmerHale

Palo Alto, CA, USA

Cisco Systems, Inc.
WilmerHale

London, United Kingdom

USPTO

Alexandria, VA, USA

Bitmain

Beijing, China

10x Genomics
Vossius & Partner mbB

Düsseldorf, Germany

Meissner Bolte Part mbB

Munich, Germany

JunHe LLP

Shanghai, China

Global IP Litigation 2024 Conference

Time  Session  Panelists
  Monday 4 March 2023  
17:00 — 19:00 Welcome reception  
  Tuesday 5 March 2024  
7:30 — 8:30 Registration  
8:30 — 8:45 Welcome and Overview Weinlein
8:45 — 9:30 Panel 1 - Fireside Chat  
  In this discussion, we’ll hear from Director Vidal and others about the problems confronting intellectual property administrative agencies in their respective countries and how in their leadership roles they are addressing those challenges. These leaders will also identify and consider some of the changes they anticipate will impact their agencies in the nearer term and how they foresee their operations functioning in the longer term in light of novel future change including the proliferation of ubiquitous uses of artificial intelligence. Faure, Frohlich, Wu*, Vidal
9:30 — 10:15 Panel 2 - The Role of Litigation Funding  
  Litigation funding is a relatively new development in Europe, but already billions of dollars have been raised and patent cases are an obvious choice for third-party funding. But with the U.K. Supreme Court’s ruling in Paccar v. Road Haulage, and the European Union’s announcement that it is investigating whether litigation funding should be regulated, is litigation funding in Europe still viable? Our panel will discuss this and more, with contributions from some of Europe’s leading funding organizations. Fetches, Gill, Hadzimehmedovic, Wielinga, Wuttke*
10:15 — 10:30 Morning Break  
10:30 — 12:00 Panel 3 - The Unified Patent Court - Nearly One Year Later  
  The Unified Patent Court (UPC) went live on June 1, 2023. While it’s still early, we now have nearly a year of data on the unitary patent and the UPC to help guide decisions as to whether to request unitary effect for European patents, and whether to bring enforcement actions in the UPC. Our panel will address these topics and more including the latest developments, perspectives from judges and counsel engaged in UPC matters, predicted trends, and considerations for attorneys and clients contemplating the UP/UPC forum. Hon. Blok, Edwards, Hon. Kupecz, Hon. Jacobi, Widera, Wuttke*
12:00 — 13:30 Lunch  
13:30  — 14:30 Panel 4 - Global Litigation - Venue Selection & Case Management  
  Increasingly, the most significant patent disputes are global in scope, involving multinational corporations and international activities. Because the substantive and procedural laws of relevant countries are often quite different—for example, regarding the availability of rapid injunctive relief or significant damages—parties strategize how to exploit those differences to their advantage. This panel will discuss some of the key procedural, substantive patent law, and economic considerations driving venue selection of the patent holder seeking to enforce its global patent portfolios, as well as patent revocation actions and declaratory proceedings. Hon. Albright, Hon. Cheney, Hon. Kokke, Muller-Stoy*, Rodrigues
14:30 — 15:15 Panel 5 - Update on China Litigation  
  This panel will provide a short overview of certain key procedural considerations for patent litigation in China, including (1) jurisdiction; (2) service of process; (3) declaratory judgment; (4) burden of proof; (5) evidence production; and (6) key events. Additionally, panel members will highlight recent cases and will identify trends as reflected in recent litigation in China. Huang*, Wang, Zhang, Zhu
15:15 — 15:30 Afternoon Break  
15:30 — 16:30 Panel 6 - International Enforcement of Trade Secrets  
  Trade secret misappropriation increasingly crosses national borders. This creates complications for lawyers and their clients, as trade secret law and practice varies widely across the world. This panel addresses these complications and strategies to address them.  Specifically, this panel addresses: (1) differences in trade secret laws between countries; (2) extraterritorial application of US law in courts and at the ITC; (3) the role of international ADR to address trade secret misappropriation; (4) digital forensic examination in international investigations;and (5) strategies for addressing transnational misappropriation.  Almeling*, Cooper, Falk, Pade, Hon. Pichlmaier, Rastemborski, Selwyn
16:30 — 18:00 Panel 7 - Global SEP/FRAND Update  
  The assertion and valuation of standard-essential patents, and the determination of a fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) royalty rate, continues to be hot topic worldwide. Whether it’s the European Commission’s proposed “framework” for SEPs, the continued rise of SEP patent pools, or the question of who determines a global FRAND rate, our panel will address these topics and provide insight from industry insiders. Delgado*, Faraji, Geiszler, Meyer, Hon. Pichlmaier, Trenton, Mutimear
18:00 — 20:00 Reception (guests invited)  
  Wednesday, 6 March 2024  
8:00 — 9:00 Registration  
9:00 — 10:00 Panel 8 - Conversation With In-House Counsel
  This diverse panel of in-house counsel representing varied industries will discuss intellectual property issues from around the world which present opportunities for and threats to their business operations. In-house legal departments are constantly being asked to do more with less, from assessing risks to new product lines to enforcing IP rights against multiple competitors. Our panelists will also provide thoughts on ways in which outside counsel can partner with their clients on IP issues and strategy to most effectively generate value for their mutual benefit. Earle, Faraji, Ferguson*, Toliver, Whitaker
10:00 — 11:00 Panel 9 - BioPharma Update
  In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic and vaccines, it is clear that biotechnology generates both innovation and IP litigation. The panel will discuss legal developments in life sciences IP litigation globally, including proposals to override IP rights in order to expand access to healthcare innovations; new decisions on what is and what is not patentable (such as plausibility in case G2/21 in the EBA, and section 112 in antibody cases in the US); and the standards required for courts to grant injunctions on patents protecting life-saving technologies. Groombridge*, Hon. Klepsch, Hon. Kokke, Metier, San Martin
11:00 — 11:15 Morning Break  
11:15 — 12:45 Panel 10 - Judicial Roundtable  
  Hear from an experienced panel of European and U.S. judges on issues impacting litigation involving patents and trade secrets, case management insights and recommendations regarding beneficial practices counsel and clients can follow to advance their interests in judicial fora. This panel will also discuss UPC litigation insights from the first year of the court's operation. Hon. Albright, Hon. Blok, Hon Cheney, Hon Kupecz, Hon. Klepsch, Powers*
12:45 — 13:00 Closing Statements Weinlein
13:00 — 14:00 Lunch  

*Panel Moderator

Date: 
Tuesday, March 5, 2024 - 8:45am to Wednesday, March 6, 2024 - 1:00pm