Michael P. Sandonato is co-chair of Venable’s IP Litigation Practice Group. A seasoned trial lawyer, he has served as lead counsel in patent litigations in district courts across the country, before the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), and in arbitrations.
He is equally adept at representing both patent owners and accused infringers. Some of the technologies Michael’s litigation work has involved include digital cameras, laser toner cartridges, smartphones, dental imaging systems, graphical user interfaces, financial products, and electronic test equipment.
Michael has lectured on patent law at conferences around the world, and has spoken on panels with such notable individuals as the chief judge of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the chief administrative law judge of the ITC, and judges from the Intellectual Property High Court in Japan and the IPR Tribunal of the Supreme People’s Court of China.
Before joining Venable in 2018, Michael was a partner at the IP boutique firm Fitzpatrick, Cella, Harper & Scinto, where he chaired the firm’s Electronics and Computer Technologies Practice Group, and served as a member of the Management Committee.
Experience :
Michael served as Lead counsel for Canon in a N.D. Ga. case, enforcing a key patent on Canon’s toner bottle technology for its imageRUNNER copy machines. Following a 10-day trial, the jury returned a verdict for Canon on all issues, including direct infringement, indirect infringement and willful infringement, and awarded the full measure of damages sought. The court subsequently awarded Canon enhanced damages and a permanent injunction.
Michael served as Lead counsel for dental technology leader Sirona Dental Systems (now Dentsply Sirona) in a D. Del. case, enforcing, six patents on CMOS imaging technology developed at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Following a Markman Order in which virtually all claim terms at issue were favorably construed and an Order striking a key defense, a resolution was reached.
Lead counsel for Prudential in D.N.J., in a case in which a General Patent Corp. entity alleged infringement by Prudential-branded real estate web sites. Following an Order finding the asserted patent to be directed to an abstract idea under the Alice test, a resolution was reached.
Education :
- J.D. Columbia Law School 1992
- M.S.E.E. University of Southern California 1989
- B.S.E.E. cum laude New York University Tandon School of Engineering 1987
Bar Admissions : New York
Court Admissions :
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
Professional Memberships :
- Federal Circuit Bar Association (Vice Chair, Global Series Committee)
- Litigation Counsel of America (Fellow, Trial Lawyer Honorary Society)
- American Bar Association
Cost
Rate : $$$