John L. North and Jeffrey J. Toney join as partners, Laura Fahey Fritts and Jonathan K. Waldrop join as special counsel and Darcy L. Jones joins as associate; all in the firm’s Atlanta office. Jack Minnear joins as partner in the firm’s New York office.
Marc E. Kasowitz, Kasowitz’s managing partner was quoted as saying in a press release at the firm’s website: “We are pleased that John and his highly respected team of litigators have joined our firm. Their impressive track record — particularly in winning complex patent cases — makes them ideal additions to our expanding IP litigation team.”
Kasowitz recently expanded its IP group in San Francisco. As well, the firm announced plans to open an office in Silicon Valley.
North, who served as the former chair of Sutherland’s intellectual property practice group, focuses on patent litigation and trade secret disputes, with many cases involving unfair competition claims and patent misuse throughout the pharmaceutical and other industries. He is also called upon to serve as arbitrator, special master and patent misuse expert in high profile cases. His prominent representations include serving as lead counsel to Teva, Minerals Technology and Gemstar T.V. Guide.
Toney tries patent infringement, trade secret an unfair competition cases before federal and state courts, and also handles transnational arbitration matters, including proceedings before the International Chamber of Commerce. A former chemist, his practice focuses on the biotech and pharmaceutical industries, including commercial disputes involving technology issues related to the design and manufacture of a range of products. Prominent representations include University of Georgia Research Foundation, Emory University, Metso and Raytheon.
Minnear’s practice focuses on patent infringement, trade secret and antitrust matters, including multi-district litigation and Section 337 actions at the United States International Trade Commission. He has litigated patent cases across a broad range of technologies, including substantial experience representing generic pharmaceutical companies in patent infringement cases.
With over 350 lawyers, Kasowitz, Benson, Torres & Friedman LLP is a national law firm specializing in complex, highly sophisticated litigation.