Nathan R. Speed

Overview

Nathan Speed is a trial and appellate lawyer focusing on complex patent litigation and post-grant matters. As head of the firm’s Appellate Practice, Nathan has served as lead counsel in more than a dozen appeals to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Nathan has also actively managed more than 40 matters before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) and regularly represents clients in federal district courts across the country as well as the United States International Trade Commission (ITC).

Nathan’s deep knowledge of the law and ability to learn new technologies quickly has allowed him to assist clients in protecting their most critical inventions across a wide spectrum of technologies. Nathan has litigated cases involving technologies ranging from bionic prosthetics and orthopedic screws to wireless networks, data protection, and computer processors.

From 2009–2010, Nathan clerked for the Honorable Arthur J. Gajarsa of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. While serving as a clerk to Judge Gajarsa, Nathan gained experience in appeals from the federal district courts, the International Trade Commission, the Court of International Trade and the Court of Federal Claims, the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences, and the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.

Nathan graduated summa cum laude from law school and received several academic awards including the Dean Award for top student in five courses and the Dr. John Ordronaux Prize, given annually to the graduate exhibiting the greatest ability.

Experience

Appellate

• Lead counsel for appellant in an appeal from an inter partes review trial in which the Wolf Greenfield team successfully invalidated all original claims of the patent, but the Board permitted the patent owner to amend its claims. On appeal, Nathan secured vacatur of the Board’s decision to allow the amended claims by convincing the Federal Circuit that the Board erred in its obviousness analysis.
• Lead counsel for appellee/cross-appellant Bose Corp. in three appeals from inter partes trials in which the Wolf Greenfield team had successfully invalidated all claims of three patents except for a single set of dependent claims found in two of the patents. While the appeal was pending, Nathan and his team identified a potentially dispositive collateral-estoppel argument, and moved to dismiss the appeals on the ground that the patents were unpatentable in view of a separate district court proceeding. In a precedential decision, the Federal Circuit agreed, finding all claims of all three patents unpatentable. (Koss Corp. v. Bose Corp., 107 F.4th 1363 (Fed. Cir. 2024)).
• Lead counsel for appellee Google Inc. in an appeal from two inter partes trials in which the Wolf Greenfield team successfully invalidated all claims of two patents asserted against Google in district court. In a precedential decision, the Federal Circuit affirmed the Board’s decision to not consider the patent owner’s attempt to antedate a prior-art reference because the patent owner’s arguments and evidence were incorporated by reference from multiple declarations and were not presented in the briefs themselves. (Parus Holdings, Inc. v. Google LLC, 70 F.4th 1365 (Fed. Cir. 2023)).
• Lead counsel for appellee Nuance Communications in an appeal from an inter partes review trial that Wolf Greenfield successfully handled. The Federal Circuit affirmed the Board’s finding that the challenged claims of a Nuance patent were not proven unpatentable. (MModal LLC v. Nuance Comm’ns, Inc., 20-1693).
• Lead counsel for appellee WisTa Laboratories in an appeal from an inter partes review trial that Wolf Greenfield successfully handled before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. Shortly after oral argument, the Federal Circuit summarily affirmed WisTa’s victory before the Board. (Provepharm Inc. v. WisTa Laboratories Ltd., 19-2372, -2373).
• Lead counsel for appellees RPX Corporation and Advanced Micro Devices in an appeal from an inter partes review trial that Wolf Greenfield successful handled before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. The Federal Circuit summarily affirmed the Board’s finding that RPX and AMD had proven the patent owner’s claims unpatentable. (IYM Technologies, LLC v. RPX Corp., Case No. 2019-1761).
• Lead counsel for appellee Smith & Nephew in an appeal from an inter partes review trial that Nathan and his team successful handled before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. The Federal Circuit issued a precedential opinion affirming the Board’s finding that Smith & Nephew had proven the patent owner’s claims unpatentable. (Arthrex, Inc. v. Smith & Nephew, Inc. 935 F.3d 1319 (Fed. Cir. 2019)).
• Lead counsel for appellee Smith & Nephew in an appeal from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. The Board, at Smith & Nephew’s request, had entered adverse judgment against the patent owner following the patent owner’s decision to statutorily disclaim claims for which Smith & Nephew had sought inter partes review. In a precedential decision, the Federal Circuit affirmed the Board’s decision, finding that 37 C.F.R. § 42.73(b) permits the Board to enter an adverse judgment when a patent owner statutorily disclaims all claims at issue after an IPR petition has been filed, but before an institution decision.  Arthrex, Inc. v. Smith & Nephew, Inc., 880 F.3d 1345 (Fed. Cir. 2018). Law360 identified the decision as one of four decisions that IP attorneys “need to know.”
• Lead counsel for appellee Cirrus Logic in an appeal from an inter partes reexamination that Wolf Greenfield successfully handled on behalf of Cirrus. The Federal Circuit affirmed our client’s victory. (Knowles Electronics LLC v. Cirrus Logic, Inc. 883 F.3d 1358 (Fed. Cir. 2018)).

District Court Litigation

• Represented Bose before the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas in a three patent litigation concerning wireless headphones. Together with Mike Rader, Nathan lead a Wolf Greenfield team that secured dismissal of the plaintiff’s original complaint for improper venue, transfer of the case to the District Court for the District of Massachusetts, and ultimately dismissal of the case with prejudice prior to Bose ever even needing to answer the plaintiff’s original complaint.
• Represented Google before the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts in patent litigations concerning low-precision, high-dynamic range computing. After more than three years of litigation, the case settled favorably the morning of closing arguments.
• Represented Formlabs Inc. before the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in an action seeking a declaratory judgment that Formlabs’ Form 2 3D printer did not infringe a patent related to 3D printing. After the Wolf Greenfield team defeated the patent owner’s motion to dismiss the complaint, the patent owner provided Formlabs with an unconditional covenant not to sue and the case was subsequently dismissed.
• Represented Smith & Nephew before the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas in a twelve-patent litigation concerning sports medicine devices. Nathan’s responsibilities included arguing at the Markman and pretrial hearings as well as examining technical experts at trial.

Post-Grant Proceedings

• On behalf of Bose, secured institution of three inter partes review petitions against patents related to wireless headphones. The PTAB has subsequently issued a final written decision finding all challenged claims of one patent unpatentable, and decisions on the remaining two patents are pending. (IPR2021-00297, -00612, -00680).
• Secured two institution decisions for petitioner Sony against a patent related to magnetic tape cartridges. In response to the petitions, the patent owner statutorily disclaimed one of the four challenged claims, and the parties settled the trials shortly after the oral hearing. (IPR2018-00876, -00877).
• On behalf of Smith & Nephew, secured a final written decision of unpatentability against a competitor’s medical device patent that was asserted in co pending litigation. Defended the Board’s decision at the Federal Circuit, and the Federal Circuit subsequently affirmed in a precedential decision. (IPR201600918).
• In four separate decisions, convinced the Board to institute IPR trials against 68 out of 68 challenged claims concerning medical device technologies. The institution decisions lead, in part, to the patent owner dismissing the challenged patents with prejudice from a co-pending litigation. (IPR201600505, 00506, 00507, and 00508).
• Represented petitioner Smith & Nephew in IPR proceedings concerning suture anchors. Patent owner statutorily disclaimed all challenged claims prior to institution, and the Board entered adverse judgment against the patent owner. Defended the Board’s decision at the Federal Circuit, and the Federal Circuit subsequently affirmed in a precedential decision. (IPR2016-00917).
• Represented patent owner Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Rencol Ltd. in an IPR proceeding (IPR2014-00309). Obtained final written decision finding challenged claims patentable.

ITC Litigation

• Represented Sony before the United States International Trade Commission in multiple patent litigations involving magnetic tape cartridges. Certain Magnetic Data Storage Tapes and Cartridges Containing the Same, 337-TA-1036, -1058, -1076.
• Represented Sony before the United States International Trade Commission in a patent litigation involving point-to-point networking technologies. Point-to-Point Network Communication Devices and Products Containing Same, 337-TA-892.
• Represented Sony before the United States International Trade Commission in patent litigation involving technologies ranging from graphics and computer processing to liquid crystal displays. Point-to-Point Network Communication Devices and Products Containing Same, 337-TA-836.

Activities

• PTAB Bar Association
• Boston Intellectual Property Law Association

Recognition

• Repeatedly named to The Best Lawyers in America®
• Repeatedly named to the Massachusetts Super Lawyers list in the field of intellectual property law
• Included in the IAM Strategy 300: The World’s Leading IP Strategists for two consecutive years
• Included in the inaugural IAM Strategy 300: Global Leaders guide
• Ranked in Patexia’s Patent Litigation Intelligence Report among the top 4% of most active and best performing patent litigation attorneys representing defendants
• Ranked in Patexia’s IPR Intelligence Report among the top 4% of best performing and most active petitioner-side attorneys practicing before the PTAB
• Ranked in Patexia’s CAFC Intelligence Report among the top 4% of most active and best performing attorneys representing appellees and appellants 
• Ranked as the 15th most active attorney representing petitioners before the PTAB in 2020 by Managing IP
• Received several academic awards while in law school including the Dean Award in five courses and the Dr. John Ordronaux Prize, given annually to the graduate exhibiting the greatest ability, based on grades, coursework, extracurricular activities, and general character and conduct
• Received the following additional academic awards while in law school: G. Joseph Tauro Distinguished Scholar, Paul J. Liacos Distinguished Scholar, and Edward F. Hennessey Distinguished Scholar

Interests

When not advocating for his clients, Nathan enjoys spending time with his wife and two children.  He also enjoys craft beers and the New England sports scene.