The IP Strategy Summit: Seattle

Sterne Kessler’s Nirav Desai and Jonathan Tuminaro, Ph.D. spoke at The IP Strategy Summit: Seattle, hosted by CenterForce. This conference brought together leading IP executives, general counsel, and industry experts to examine how top organizations are protecting, leveraging, and monetizing their intellectual property assets in a fast-changing global market.

Patent Enforcement: Driving Value While Managing Risk

Nirav participated in the panel “Patent Enforcement: Driving Value While Managing Risk.” The discussion highlighted how enforcement is no longer a reactive function, but a strategic business decision tied to revenue generation, competitive positioning, and risk tolerance. Panelists shared how organizations are using enforcement to unlock portfolio value while maintaining discipline in an increasingly complex dispute environment.

Topics included:

• How companies decide when to assert, license, or hold assets based on business objectives
• Using enforcement to generate revenue while avoiding unnecessary litigation exposure
• Aligning legal, finance, and executive stakeholders around enforcement strategy and risk tolerance
• Balancing enforcement opportunities with defensive readiness in a shifting litigation landscape

Company-vs-Company Patent Wars: Offensive + Defensive Playbooks

Jonathan joined the panel, “Company-vs-Company Patent Wars: Offensive + Defensive Playbooks.” This session discussed how corporate patent litigation has entered a new phase of complexity and intensity as companies increasingly face peers, suppliers, and cross-industry challengers. Panelists discussed how enforcement and defense strategies are evolving in an environment of rising filings, multi-forum battles, and heightened settlement leverage.

Topics included:

• How new PTAB discretionary-denial trends and USPTO guidance are reshaping filing, enforcement, and defense strategy.
• Navigating cross-licensing demands, indemnity, and supply-chain leverage as part of modern litigation posture.
• Coordinating PTAB, district court, ITC, and UPC proceedings without overextending teams or budgets.
• Lessons learned from in-house leaders on what truly moved settlement numbers—and how today’s company-vs-company disputes are redefining risk tolerance and deal dynamics.