William H. Milliken

Overview

William H. Milliken is a director in Sterne Kessler’s Trial & Appellate and Electronic Practice Groups. Will is co-chair of the firm’s appellate practice and focuses on patent litigation in the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, federal district courts, the International Trade Commission, and the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. He has extensive experience trying patent infringement cases in district court and briefing and arguing Federal Circuit appeals and complex motions. His clients include leading companies in the hi-tech, consumer products, pharmaceutical, and manufacturing industries.

Will is particularly well-known for his work in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, where he leverages his deep knowledge of procedural and substantive appellate law to achieve successful outcomes for his clients.

Will also has an extensive pro bono practice focusing on veterans’ appeals and Eighth Amendment issues. He has litigated in the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and the federal district courts on behalf of veterans seeking disability benefits and incarcerated individuals seeking habeas corpus.

Will is an Adjunct Professor of Law at the Antonin Scalia Law School of George Mason University, where he teaches an upper-level seminar on Patent Office litigation.

Will graduated first in his class at Vanderbilt University with a B.A. in mathematics and received his J.D., magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School. While at Harvard, Will was a winner of the Ames Moot Court Competition and served as executive editor of the Harvard Law & Policy Review. After law school, he clerked on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana and the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. He has authored two law review articles on constitutional criminal procedure and has written several problems for Harvard Law School’s moot court competition.

In addition to patent litigation, Will enjoys skiing, running, playing guitar, and spending time with his wife and his dogs Lulu and Rocco.

Technical Publications

• Retroactivity, the Due Process Clause, and the Federal Question in Montgomery v. Louisiana, 68 Stan. L. Rev. Online 42 (with Jason Zarrow) (2015)
• The Retroactivity of Substantive Rules to Cases on Collateral Review and the AEDPA, With A Special Focus on Miller v. Alabama, 48 Ind. L. Rev. 931 (with Jason Zarrow) (2015)

Accolades

• Patexia, “100 Most Active CAFC Attorneys Representing Patent Appellants (Top 10)” (2022)
• Patexia, “100 Most Active CAFC Attorneys Overall (Representing Appellants and Appellees) (Top 50)” (2022)
• Patexia, “100 Best Performing CAFC Attorneys Representing Appellees (Top 50)” (2022)
• Patexia, “100 Best Performing CAFC Attorneys Representing Appellants (Top 50)” (2022)
• Patexia, “100 Best Performing CAFC Attorneys Overall (Representing Appellants or Appellees) (Top 50)” (2022)

Education

• J.D., Harvard Law School, magna cum laude
• B.A., Mathematics, Vanderbilt University, summa cum laude

Admissions

• District of Columbia
• District of Columbia Court of Appeals
• Supreme Court of the United States
• Tennessee
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

Clerkships

• U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
• U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana

Events