Rothwell Figg Ernst & Manbeck PC

Partner and Shareholder

Steven Lieberman is a seasoned trial lawyer and counselor whose practice encompasses the full spectrum of intellectual property law, from patent litigation to eCommerce, privacy, and post-grant proceedings. He represents leading media, technology, and life sciences companies, with current and former clients including The New York Times, MediaNews Group, NBCUniversal, HQ Specialty Pharma Corp., Forbes Media, ViacomCBS, Bloomberg, InfoRLife SA, WG Critical Care, Paramount Global, Dow Jones,  Warner Bros. Discovery, Fox, and numerous major publishing and broadcasting organizations.

In the rapidly evolving field of artificial intelligence, Steven counsels companies, with a particular focus on the media industry, on intellectual property and privacy issues arising from AI and machine learning. Between 2023 and 2025, he and his colleagues filed six high-profile copyright lawsuits against OpenAI, Microsoft, and Perplexity AI on behalf of major news organizations across the United States, including The New York Times, the New York Daily News, U.S. News & World Report, and the Chicago Tribune. These cases, pending in the Southern District of New York, address the use of copyrighted content to train generative AI systems. In recognition of his leadership in this space, Steven has been named one of Lawdragon’s 100 Leading AI & Legal Tech Advisors.

Steven has extensive experience litigating patent disputes in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, veterinary, and medical device sectors in federal district courts, on appeal, and before the International Trade Commission, and he regularly represents clients on intellectual property matters relating to electronic commerce. He has served as lead counsel in more than 100 patent infringement cases and regularly first-chairs final hearings before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) in inter partes review (IPR) and other post-grant proceedings. His record in IPRs is particularly strong, achieving favorable outcomes in 89% of matters for petitioners and 91% for patent owners. He also advises companies on evaluating patent portfolios, protecting intellectual property in Internet-based businesses, and assessing infringement risk.

Steven is also an accomplished First Amendment litigator with a dedicated pro bono practice. He currently represents the Bethesda African Cemetery Coalition and the pastor of Macedonia Baptist Church in ongoing efforts to protect the historic Moses African Cemetery in Maryland, a burial ground for formerly enslaved people and their descendants. After securing a preliminary injunction in the Circuit Court for Montgomery County preventing the cemetery’s sale absent statutory compliance, he argued before the Supreme Court of Maryland. The majority opinion found that Maryland common law prohibits the desecration of the remains of the dead and that the Coalition could amend its complaint to assert claims for such desecration and to seek injunctive and other equitable relief against continuing desecration of the Moses African Cemetery.

Member, Sedona Conference WG10 Working Group on Biopharma Litigation

Member, Intellectual Property & Technology Advisory Council of George Washington University Law School

Board Member and Co-Chair of Policy Task Force, American Jewish Committee (AJC) in Washington

J.D., Columbia University Law School (Stone Scholar, all three years)

A.B., Politics, Princeton University (summa cum laude)