Douglas Carsten > McDermott Will & Emery LLP > Silicon Valley, United States > Lawyer Profile

McDermott Will & Emery LLP
SUITE 100, 275 MIDDLEFIELD ROAD
MENLO PARK
SILICON VALLEY, CA 94025
CALIFORNIA
United States
Douglas Carsten photo

Work Department

Intellectual Property

Position

Douglas (Doug) H. Carsten is the co-head of McDermott’s global Intellectual Property Group and focuses his practice on complex patent litigation disputes. He counsels clients in various technology areas, including pharmaceuticals, biologics, medical devices, diagnostic products, retail products, and computer software. Doug has substantial first-chair trial experience that includes litigating high-profile and billion-dollar patent cases.

Please visit McDermott website for full biography: https://www.mwe.com/people/carsten-douglas-h/

Lawyer Rankings

United States > Intellectual property > Patents: litigation (full coverage)

Comprised of ‘highly skilled experts’, McDermott Will & Emery LLP excels in high-stakes competitor disputes for clients, with a particular emphasis on the biotech and pharma sectors. William Gaede, who splits his time between Silicon Valley and San Francisco, has extensive experience trying patent disputes related to antibodies, proteins, small molecules and diagnostics. In Orange County, Douglas Carsten is a key contact for life sciences companies given his expertise in pharma and biologics. Both Sarah Columbia from Boston and Michael Chu from Chicago are strong trial litigators with successful track records in jury and bench trials, as well as appellate proceedings. Thomas Steindler, in Washington DC, is distinguished by his expertise in complex Hatch-Waxman cases, while Shane Nichols, in Atlanta, focuses on patent litigation in the food and beverage, telecoms and petrochemical industries. Other key practitioners include Austin’s Kevin Meek and New York’s Simon Roberts, both of whom are seasoned litigators who handle biotech and high-tech patent infringement.

United States > Healthcare > Life sciences

McDermott Will & Emery LLP advises on IP, regulatory, transactional, and litigation matters relating to life sciences at a national and international level. Its client base includes internationally recognized life sciences companies in healthcare, life sciences, pharma, and biotech. The team advises clients on matters across all phases of product development, with vast experience acting as regulatory counsel in legislative compliance and strategies. The practice stands out for its strong IP experience, including patent building, maintenance, enforcement, and prosecution. It currently represents Alnylam Pharmaceuticals in infringement lawsuits against Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech regarding their COVID-19 vaccines, with Sarah Chapin Columbia being one of the lead partners. Silicon Valley’s Judy Mohr also serves as IP counsel to QuidelOrtho Corporation regarding corporate transactions and its patent estate. The practice is co-headed by Douglas Carsten and James Ravitz, who focus on intellectual property and FDA regulations, respectively. Kristian Werling, transactions specialist, and Byron Kalogerou, who founded the firm’s life sciences practice, are the firm’s key corporate matters experts. First chair litigator Michael Sitzman joined the practice in November 2024 from DLA Piper LLP (US).