Michael B. MacWilliams chairs the Commercial Litigation Practice Group from Venable’s Baltimore Office and co-chairs Venable’s E Discovery Task Force. Michael is an accomplished litigator who represents clients in complex commercial, product liability, and intellectual property disputes and class action defense.
His practice areas include copyright and patent infringement, misappropriation of trade secrets and related business torts, and securities and shareholder disputes.
Michael has first- and second-chair experience – jury and non-jury – in state and federal trial courts and before arbitration tribunals across the country.
His technical knowledge and substantial e-discovery experience enable him to develop and implement the effective, functional, and cost-efficient e-discovery strategies necessary to meet the demands of complex litigation.
Experience :
- Served as principal attorney in the mass removal of hundreds of Depakote personal injury cases from St. Clair County and Cook County, Illinois, and briefed the defense of that novel Class Action Fairness Act “mass action” removal effort in the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, resulting in a reported opinion
- Led the defense against fraud claims brought by a Florida-based travel agency, involving ex-U.S. real estate investments. The lawsuit resulted in dismissal with prejudice, and no monies were paid in settlement
- Worked with Venable partners Paul Strain and David Heubeck to obtain a multi-million-dollar willful infringement verdict in an electric fireplace patent dispute tried before a jury in federal court in Chicago
- Served as lead counsel in a software licensing and copyright suit involving complex and novel “work for hire” issues, ultimately settling the case on terms that resolved competing claims to ownership of the software in favor of Venable’s client
- Played a key role in obtaining a multi-million-dollar counterclaim award in a trade secret case involving the polymer chemistry aspects of a commercial construction material, spearheading the expert chemist witness program; jury concluded that plaintiff/counter-defendant had directly and wrongfully copied client’s proprietary product.
Education :
- J.D.summa cum laudeUniversity of Baltimore School of Law1994
- B.S.Mechanical EngineeringVirginia Tech1989
Bar Admissions : Maryland, District of Columbia
Court Admissions :
- U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland
- U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
Professional Memberships :
- Member, board of directors, Maryland Chapter, Federal Bar Association
- Member, Rule Day Law Club
- Author, “Rule 30(b)(6) Depositions Directed to ESI Issues,” in Managing E-Discovery and ESI: From Pre-Litigation Through Trial, Paul W. Grimm et al., eds., 2011.
Cost
Rate : $$$