Embedded Files
Linda Mettes, Founder and President
Linda specializes in licensing and intellectual property litigation and counseling.
After more than 25 years of counseling clients and leading teams on intellectual property disputes nationwide, she has pivoted to in-house work. She assists small businesses without inside counsel and large businesses whose in house counsel need an extra pair of able hands.
Linda is a registered patent attorney who began her career at the renowned firm of Kenyon and Kenyon in New York City. She has been a partner at Kenyon and two Michigan firms.
As a devoted mentor, teacher, and sponsor to many throughout her career, Linda is an ardent proponent of diversity and inclusion. Linda teaches patent litigation as an adjunct professor at Michigan State University; served as Detroit City Lead for the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity; and served as Chief Diversity Officer at the Brooks Kushman firm. Linda has also been integral in STEM for Girls scholarships and programming in association with the American Heart Association. Linda was honored as a 2018 Women in the Law by Michigan Lawyers Weekly in recognition of her work in this arena.
Linda has provided legal opinions, conducted due diligence and negotiated and drafted licensing agreements for over 25 years. Linda has also litigated patent, trademark, trade secret, trade dress, and copyright cases nationwide, including Delaware, California, Texas, Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Utah, Florida, Washington, Massachusetts, Ohio, Indiana, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB), the International Trade Commission (ITC), and the Federal Circuit, Ninth Circuit and Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Her technical ability cuts through a multitude of technology. She has led cases in a wide array of technology such as computer hardware, control systems and software, silicon wafer and semi-conductor technology, consumer products and electronics, cell phones, televisions, medical and neurosurgical devices, vaccines, pharmaceuticals, ophthalmic surgical equipment, stents, mass spectrometry, medical imaging, metal casting, automobiles and automotive components, financial products, Internet advertising, and polyethylene foam.
Linda has deposed over 100 witnesses, including inventors, experts, and company officers. Linda has briefed and/or argued over 100 motions and appeals, including summary judgment, Daubert, Markman, and sanctions motions.
Linda has also worked on many IPRs (Inter Partes Review), as well as prosecuted patents, particularly in reexamination and continuation practice for important patents asserted or about to be asserted in litigation. She has managed and built IP portfolios for clients.
Representative Matters
JTEKT Corp. v. GKN Auto. Ltd. (Federal Circuit): Briefed and argued successful dismissal of appeal of IPR decision for lack of standing; counsel of record before Supreme Court in opposition to JTEKT petition for certiorari.
Automotive Body Parts Assoc. v. Ford Global Technologies, LLC (E.D. Michigan): Obtained summary judgment for Ford Global on plaintiff’s declaratory judgment claims concerning Ford Global’s design patents.
In re Certain Hybrid Electric Vehicles (ITC): Trial counsel for Ford Motor Company in multi-patent investigation directed to hybrid electric vehicles. Settlement after trial.
New World v. Ford Global Technologies (N.D. Texas): Led successful motion for Rule 11 sanctions and motions to dismiss Ford Global for lack of personal jurisdiction in Texas and for res judicata (with dismissals affirmed on appeal).
Mercado v. Indio Products (C.D. California): Led motion to dismiss copyright claim and successful motion for summary judgment on trade dress claims.
Signal IP, Inc. v. Ford Motor Company: Led successful motion to transfer Ford from California.
Easton Technical Products v. Eastman Outdoors (District of Utah): Lead counsel in contract dispute.
Indio Products, Inc. v. Camao, Inc. (C.D. California): Lead counsel on copyright and infringement case.
Indio Products, Inc. v. Uni-Lite Candles Inc. (S.D. Texas): Lead counsel on copyright and infringement case.
RFA Brands, LLC v. Beauvais (E.D. Michigan): Obtained summary judgment of liability and damages related to consumer products.
MEMC Elec. Materials, Inc. v. Mitsubishi Materials Silicon Corp. (N.D. California and Federal Circuit): Obtained affirmance of Daubert exclusion of technical expert and non-infringement ruling on silicon wafer technology. Case No. 4:05-cv-02133
Parental Guide of Texas, Inc. v. Sony Corp., et al. (E.D. Texas): Led team on early NPE case.
Vulcan Engineering Co. v. FATA Aluminium, Inc. (Federal Circuit): Led team through Markman and trial and obtained affirmance by CAFC with additional price erosion damages awarded.
Polytorx, LLC v. Sambo Machine Co., Dong Joo Kim, Ji Yong Kim, et al. (Michigan – Washtenaw Circuit Court): Obtained successful dismissal and affirmance on appeal for trade secret case.
Island Intellectual Property LLC v. Deutsche Bank AG (S.D. New York).
Dow Chem. Co. v. Astro-Valcour, Inc. (Federal Circuit): Implemented a strategy to place plaintiff in a catch-22 with a successful claim construction motion to ensure a loss either on infringement or validity that was followed up with successful summary judgment motion for invalidity; authored appeal brief to obtain affirmance by CAFC.
Aptargroup, Inc. v. Summit Packaging Systems (N.D. Illinois and Federal Circuit): Obtained a denial of lost profits at trial and sanctions prior to trial with affirmance by CAFC.
Ford Global Techs v. New World Int’l (N.D. Texas): Won jurisdictional and summary judgment motions, ultimately resulting in a jury verdict of willful infringement.
St. Clair Intellectual Prop. Consultants v. Acer, Inc. (D. Delaware): Obtained successful Markman claim construction briefing and successfully briefed/argued summary judgment and Daubert challenge to damages and technical experts.
Lens.com, Inc. v. 1-800 Contacts, Inc. (Trademark Trial and Appeal Board): Determined an approach to obtain cancellation of mark and implemented it through a strategic deposition followed up by a successful motion for cancellation, later affirmed by Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
1-800 Contacts, Inc. v. Lens.com, Inc. (D. Utah): Obtained repeated sanctions for discovery obstruction.
Evans Med. v. American Cyanamid Co. (S.D. New York): Obtained summary judgment of non-infringement for defendant, affirmed by the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
Aesculap AG & Co. KG v. Walter Lorenz Surgical, Inc. (N.D. California): Obtained successful claim construction ruling leading to settlement.
Johnson & Johnson v. American Home Products Corp. (E.D. Pennsylvania): After vigorous discovery and thorough mock research, wrote successful in limine and Daubert motions excluding an expert’s billion-dollar damages opinion in pre-trial phase, leading to favorable settlement.
Henkel Corp v. Sika Corp. (E.D. Michigan): Developed non-infringement theory and evidence leading to successful settlement.
Advanced Medical Optics Inc. v. Alcon Manufacturing (D. Delaware): Taking over matter after an adverse jury verdict, developed and advanced new evidence of invalidity leading to favorable settlement.
Alcon Manufacturing Ltd v. Advanced Medical Optics Inc. (N.D. Texas).
DuPont Pharmaceutical Co. v. Nycomed Amersham Imaging (D. Delaware): Favorable settlement after claim construction hearing.
Cephalon Inc. v. Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc., et al. (D. New Jersey).
IBM v. Conner Peripherals (ND. California): 20 patent case directed to computer hard drives, which the court referred to as “the largest patent litigation in history” at the time.
Page updated
Report abuse