Steven G. Schortgen

Steven Schortgen is a partner and Practice Group Leader of the Intellectual Property Practice Group in the firm's Dallas office.

“Clients appreciate Schortgen's commercial focus, skill at trial and ability to
communicate complex legal information.”
- Chambers USA (2023)

Areas of Practice

Steven has deep, first-chair experience in complex intellectual property litigation of all kinds, from patent and copyright to trade secret and trademark. He writes and speaks frequently on copyright, trade secret and patent issues as they relate to software and technology clients. Because he previously personally published commercial software, Steven provides special insight into litigation issues in computer and computer-related industries and often litigates software and software-as-services claims.

As a natural extension to his intellectual property practice, Steven is particularly experienced in non-competition and non-disclosure agreements and the issues surrounding departing employees, including forensic investigations of computer and computer-related media.

Steven writes and counsels extensively in the area of electronic discovery.

Experience

Representative Matters

• Google Inc. and Motorola Mobility – patent litigation involving navigation technology relating to web browser applications and e-commerce services
• Automatic Data Processing, Inc. – patent litigation involving simple object access communications protocol
• Match.com, Evite.com and Expedia.com – patent litigation involving cookie encryption
• STMicroelectronics, Inc. – patent litigation involving CAD/CAM software for integrated circuits
• STMicroelectronics, Inc. – patent litigation involving ethernet connectivity adapters
• Red Lion Hotels Corporation and the Howard Hughes Company – patent litigation involving systems for internet data exchange and display
• Epic Media – patent litigation involving software and systems for internet affiliate marketing
• Procter & Gamble – patent and trade secret litigation
• Northrop Grumman Corporation – patent litigation involving vehicle monitoring software and systems
• Hewlett Packard – Multiple representations involving dozens of information technology systems and software-as-services
• Community Trust Bank – patent litigation involving system for data imaging
• Deutsche Lufthansa AG – patent litigation involving systems for analyzing and processing aircraft maintenance data
• Advanced Medical Optical – patent lawsuit involving eye surgery products
• Applica, Inc. – lead trial counsel in ITC section 337 action In the Matter of Certain Self Cleaning Litter Boxes and Components Thereof
• Custom Food Group – trade secret lawsuit involving food industry, resulting in verdict in CFG’s favor on all counts and bankruptcy of all defendants.
• Defense of major law firm in patent malpractice lawsuit
• Erie Management Group – defense of high-profile lawsuit involving device for detection of biological and chemical warfare agents using Raman spectroscopy
• Tempur-Pedic – multiple trademark lawsuits
• Dropbox – trademark litigation
• Fox Television Stations, Inc. – contract and trade secret dispute with another major broadcasting company
• OsteoMed, L.P. – trade secret lawsuit involving surgical devices
• Fujitsu Network Communications, Inc. – trade secret lawsuit against former employees and multiple startup companies, resulting in complete cessation of business for startup companies
• BearingPoint, Inc. – high profile litigation against Hawaiian Telecom involving more than 60 information technology systems
• A national, marquee financial institution – claim against vendor relating to dozens of information technology systems intended to replace all core financial and reporting functions
• Affiliated Computer Systems – arbitration involving a dozen information technology systems for regional hospital system
• Electronic Data Systems – dispute involving Navy Marine Corp Intranet
• Seisint, Inc. – trade secret lawsuit involving computer data warehouses

Honors

The World's Leading Patent Professionals, IAM Patent 1000, 2022-2024

Selected by D Magazine as one of the "Best Lawyers Under 40" in the Dallas/Fort Worth area in 2002 and 2006

Litigation - Patent, Best Lawyers in America, 2016, 2020-2025

Named by Law & Politics as a "Texas Rising Star," 2004-2006, 2008-2009

Articles

• Co-author of more than a half-dozen sections concerning intellectual property claims, Texas Jurisprudence Pleading and Practice Forms, Thomson West, Second Edition, 2001
• "Two Bites of the Trade Secret Misappropriation Apple," Texas Lawyer, May 2000
• "Conducting Discovery in America While Winding Up a European Concern," Butterworths Atkin's Court Forms, Second Edition, Volume 10 (British equivalent of Moore's Federal Practice), 2000
• "The Almost Perfect Crime: Using Misappropriation to Fill the Gaps in Unfair Competition Law," Texas Lawyer, September 1999
• "Dressing Up Software Interface Protection: The Application of Two Pesos to 'Look and Feel,'" Cornell Law Review (awarded third place in the Brand Names Foundation's national competition for the best overall article in the field of trademark law)

Media Mentions

Speaking Engagements

• "The Seven Deadly Sins of Outsourcing Litigation," University of Texas Technology Conference, 2012
• "Update On Trade Secret Law: Shedding Light on a Marshy Landscape," Texas Bar CLE, 2012
• "Protecting Your Intellectual Property," State Bar of Texas Essentials of Business Law 2012 forum
• "Valuation In Complex Intellectual Property Matters," Dallas Bar Association, 2012
• "Cloud Computing: Lessons from the Trenches," DFW General Counsel’s forum, 2011
• More than three dozen speeches on electronic discovery and evidence for various continuing legal education seminars, including the State Bar of Texas e-discovery workshop
• "Developments in Electronic Discovery," U.S. Department of Energy annual contractor’s conference
• Quoted in "Making Rain on the Net," ABA Journal
• Quoted in "The Zubulake Road Show," ABA Journal
• "Intellectual Property and E-Business," Sage U.S. Software Developer's Conference
• Texas Technology, quoted multiple times on various intellectual property and litigation matters

Memberships

Member, Dallas Association of Young Lawyers

Member, Dallas Bar Associations

Member, various committees, including past President of Young Leader's Society, United Way of Metropolitan Dallas,