ITC Section 337 Litigation & Enforcement: A Look Back and a Sneak Peek to the Future

Gary Hnath is a Partner in Mayer Brown’s Washington DC office. A graduate of Michigan State University and Harvard Law School, Gary focuses his practice on intellectual property litigation and counseling, including disputes involving patent, trademark and copyright infringement and trade secrets. He has participated in over 45 investigations at the US International Trade Commission under Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930, one of the principal forums for litigating intellectual property disputes involving imported articles.

A leading authority in the area of Section 337 litigation, Gary is a former senior staff attorney with the ITC’s Office of Unfair Import Investigations, president of the ITC Trial Lawyers Association, and Chair of the ITC Committee of the AIPLA. He has lectured throughout the United States and Asia and written widely on the subject of Section 337 investigations. Gary represented the first Chinese company to prevail after trial in a Section 337 investigation, and during the course of his career has been lead counsel in some of the most significant and high profile Section 337 investigations in a wide range of technologies, including cases involving concealed cabinet hinges, electric power tools, sucralose, sleep apnea treatment devices, coenzyme Q10, linear actuators, acesulfame potassium, laminated packaging, toner cartridges, dental positioning adjustment appliances, ground fault circuit interrupters, neodymium-iron-boron magnets, MVA viruses, computer forensic devices, vein harvesting surgical systems, and wind and solar-powered light posts and street lamps.

Carla Mulhern, Managing Principal, Analysis Group; M.Sc., economics, London School of Economics and Political Science; B.S., mathematics, Bucknell University

Ms. Mulhern specializes in the application of economic principles to issues arising in complex business litigation. She has testified on damages issues arising in commercial litigation matters such as intellectual property disputes in a number of district and state Courts.  As well, she has provided testimony on economic issues arising in the context of Section 337 investigations at the International Trade Commission (ITC).  At the ITC, Ms. Mulhern has testified on a variety of economic issues including domestic industry, remedy, bond, commercial success, and public interest. Her litigation experience spans a variety of industries, including pharmaceuticals, medical devices, automotive, entertainment, consumer products, computer hardware and software, semiconductors, and telecommunications. In non-litigation matters, Ms. Mulhern has assisted clients in valuing intellectual property and other business assets in the context of strategic alliances and joint ventures. She is a member of the American Economic Association and the Licensing Executives Society, and is a frequent writer and speaker on issues related to intellectual property valuation and damages assessment.

Eric W. Schweibenz is a partner in Oblon’s Litigation and ITC Litigation practice groups focused on patent litigation in the federal courts and before the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC). With extensive legal experience, Mr. Schweibenz also counsels clients in all fields on a full range of trademark and copyright law issues. As a result of his successes, Mr. Schweibenz has been recognized by independent rankings outlets as a leading patent practitioner in ITC and Patent Litigation.

Mr. Schweibenz’s extensive experience in complex litigation includes representing both domestic and foreign companies and their U.S. affiliates and subsidiaries across a spectrum of diverse technologies, including automotive and hybrid electric vehicles and components thereof, medical devices, semiconductors, gas turbine engines, liquid crystal display innovations, and oil and steel production. Mr. Schweibenz received a Juris Doctor from Roger Williams University School of Law.