Intellectual Property Attorney of the Year Finalists: Adam Alper and Michael De Vries, Kirkland & Ellis
Adam Alper and Michael De Vries were named finalists for “Intellectual Property Attorney of the Year” by The Recorder and participated in a Q&A.
Adam Alper and Michael De Vries, Kirkland & Ellis, are finalists for The Recorder's Intellectual Property Attorney of the Year award. Read a Q&A with them below.
What advice would you give to new attorneys specializing in IP?
De Vries: Critical thinking and creativity are essential to building a strong practice. Take the time to listen to your teammates and learn from them, but also don’t hesitate to offer your own perspective. Even the most junior member of the team can bring fresh insights or alternative ways of thinking that more senior attorneys might not have considered. A team’s strength lies in the contributions of each member, so make sure your input counts.
Alper: A good trial attorney is a good storyteller. While it is absolutely crucial to know our cases inside and out, all the preparation you have done is flattened if you don’t have a clear story to tell. Juries are smart, and if you can confidently tell an accurate and compelling story of the litigation, it doesn’t matter how complicated the facts of the case are—you will have given them the tools to make the most informed decision possible.
How is the practice of IP law changing?
Alper: With more competitors turning to intellectual property to safeguard their innovations, and technologies become increasingly complex, we’re seeing larger, more high-value jury trials than ever before. It’s safe to say that more cases are being tried in the IP space than any other area of litigation with a notable increase in these cope of companies’ assertations, primarily in the trade secret space. Companies really see the value of intellectual property in their businesses and will go to great lengths to protect it.
De Vries: The number of trade secret cases filed in recent years has significantly increased, and we’re seeing greater specialization in this area of the law. There’s a surge in major competitor disputes where traditionally, patent rights would have been used exclusively to protect critical technologies. Now, more and more companies are relying on trade secret law to defend their intellectual property and turning to counsel with experience and proficiency in this area of the law.
