Overview

Michael De Vries is a nationally recognized IP trial lawyer with substantial success representing plaintiffs in high-stakes intellectual property trials. He has served as lead counsel in numerous patent and other intellectual property-related matters. Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business has described him as “phenomenal at managing a case, but also phenomenal in a court,” as well as “experienced counsel for the handling of misuse of trade secrets allegations.”

Since 2018, Mike has secured over $2.5 billion in plaintiff jury verdicts and settlements on behalf of his clients in IP litigations, including over $1.8 billion in five straight plaintiff jury verdicts in favor of his clients since September 2019: a $855 million jury verdict in October 2020 on behalf of Cognizant against a competitor in a trade secret and copyright case; a $765 million jury verdict in February 2020 on behalf of Motorola Solutions in a trade secret case against a competitor, Hytera; a $125 million jury verdict in September 2019 on behalf of EagleView Technologies in a patent case against a competitor; a $40 million jury verdict in March 2022 on behalf of Comet Technologies in a trade secret case against a competitor; and a $30 million jury verdict in June 2021 on behalf of LivePerson in a trade secret case against a competitor. On the defense side, Mike has obtained numerous defense-side jury verdicts, including a complete defense jury verdict for Samsung in February 2024 in a multi-patent case brought in Waco, Texas alleging $4 billion in damages, which would have been the largest patent verdict in U.S. history. These verdicts received extensive media coverage including The New York Times, Reuters, Bloomberg Law, and Mike was awarded The Am Law Litigation Daily’sLitigator of the Week” feature multiple times for these victories in the last two years. In March 2022, The American Lawyer featured Mike’s years-long jury trial win streak in an article entitled “All They Do Is Win, Win, Win: Dissecting a Trial Hot Streak.” 

Named Law360’s “Trial MVP of the Year” in both 2020 and 2021 for his lead trial counsel work on IP litigation matters, Mike is a member of the Kirkland practices recognized as Law360 2020 “Practice Groups of the Year” for Intellectual Property and Trials. The Daily Journal named Mike to its 2010, 2014 and 2018–2024 lists of “Top Intellectual Property Lawyers” and its 2020–2022 lists of “Top Trade Secrets Lawyers,” and recognized Mike and his team in "The 2019 CLAY Awards: Intellectual Property" for their successful representation of Cisco in its long-running IP battle: Cisco Systems Inc. v. Arista Networks Inc. Mike was also named one of the Daily Journal’s “Top 75 IP Litigators in California” in 2010, 2014 and 2018–2021, and was featured among the Los Angeles Business Journal’s 2020 “Most Influential People in Los Angeles” and a “Top Litigator in Los Angeles” in 2018, 2020 and 2021. Additionally, he was a recipient of the 2020 “California Trailblazers” award from The Recorder. The 2012 and 2015–2023 editions of The Legal 500 U.S. recommend Mike for his work on the Firm’s Tier 1 Patent Litigation team, noting that Mike is “a key figure” in the Firm’s patent practice, and in the 2020–2022 editions, Mike is featured as a “Leading Lawyer.” In 2024, Forbes named him to its list of “America’s Top 200 Lawyers.” He was also recognized by World Intellectual Property Review (WIPR) in its 2024 “USA Trade Secrets Rankings.”

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Thought Leadership

Publications 

"Patent Auctions: emerging trend?" National Law Journal, May 8, 2006

"United States v. Microsoft," 14 B.T.L.J. 303 (1999)

Recognition

Recognized in Benchmark Litigation:

  • National Practice Area Star, 2021–2025
  • California Litigation Star, 2021–2025
  • Local Litigation Star, 2025

Recognized in the World Intellectual Property Review’s “USA Trade Secrets Rankings,” 2024

“Business of Law: Updates, Trends & Visionaries,” Los Angeles Times B2B Publishing, 2024

“America’s Top 200 Lawyers,” Forbes, 2024

Finalist for "Intellectual Property Attorney of the Year," Los Angeles Business Journal, 2021

Ranked #1 in the New York Law Journal’s list of “Top Verdicts & Settlements of the Northeast,” 2020

“Trial MVP of the Year,” Law360, 2020–2021

“Practice Groups of the Year: Intellectual Property and Trials,” Law360, 2020

Recommended by The Legal 500 U.S., 2012, 2015–2023; Rated “Leading Lawyer,” 2020–2023

“500 Leading Litigators in America,” Lawdragon, 2022, 2024

“Top Trade Secrets Lawyers,” Daily Journal, 2020–2022

“Top Intellectual Property Lawyers,” Daily Journal, 2010, 2014, 20182024

“The CLAY Awards: Intellectual Property,” Daily Journal, 2019

“California Trailblazers,” The Recorder, 2020

“Top 100 Lawyers in Los Angeles,” Los Angeles Business Journal, 2022 

“Top Litigators in Los Angeles,” Los Angeles Business Journal, 2018, 2020, 2021

“LA500: The Most Influential People in Los Angeles,” Los Angeles Business Journal, 2020–2024

“Leaders of Influence: Litigation & Trial Lawyers,” Los Angeles Business Journal, 2020–2022, 2024

Recognized in Litigation in the IAM Patent 1000: The World’s Leading Patent Professionals, 20192020

Ranked in Intellectual Property, Chambers USA, 20142017, 2021–2023

"Super Lawyer,” Southern California Super Lawyers, 2023

“Rising Star,” Southern California Super Lawyers, 2008, 20112014

Berkeley Center for Law & Technology’s Certificate in Law and Technology

Adjunct Professor, University of California at Irvine’s The Paul Merage School of Business, “Intellectual Property Law and Strategy,” Winter Quarter, 2007

Memberships & Affiliations

Association of Business Trial Lawyers

Federal Bar Association (Member of Board of Directors, Orange County Chapter)

Orange County Bar

Credentials

Admissions & Qualifications

  • 2000California

Courts

  • United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
  • United States District Court for the Central District of California
  • United States District Court for the Northern District of California
  • United States District Court for the Southern District of California
  • United States District Court for the Eastern District of California
  • United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas

Education

  • University of California, Berkeley, School of LawJ.D.2000

    Order of the Coif

    Recipient of BCLT’s Certificate of Law and Technology

  • University of California, BerkeleyB.A.1996