Patent Experience

Dr. Walker works with law firms and private companies on a range of patent prosecution and litigation matters, from researching prior art to investigating possible infringement, creating expert reports, drafting witness statements, and testifying on behalf of his clients.

At Sequence Design, the Silicon Valley company he founded in the mid-1990s, Dr. Walker directed the prosecution of a number of his own patents in the areas of integrated circuit design and EDA software. His experience as an inventor and as a business executive allows him a vantage point on patent prosecution and litigation matters that is as savvy business wise as technically.

Success Story

Dr. Walker has extensive experience supporting patent litigation. He has crafted expert reports and declarations supporting his opinions regarding prior art, patent validity, and infringement. He has also provided dozens of hours of expert testimony on his opinions and his work has resulted in significant wins for his clients.

In a recent patent litigation, the parties disputed the meaning of 11 terms. Dr. Walker provided an opinion on the proper construction for those 11 terms. In an resounding victory for his client, the Court agreed with Dr. Walker’s construction for all 11 terms. The Claim Construction Order frequently cited to Dr. Walker’s declaration as support for the Court’s Construction.

Validity and Invalidity

A proper assessment of the validity of a patent requires not only a high-level understanding of the technology at issue, but also the experience and technical know-how to target prior art searches with precision and efficiency.

Dr. Walker then provides his clients with a claim-by-claim analysis of the relevant technology and prepares the accompanying reports and expert declarations. He is frequently asked to testify at depositions in connection with his studies.

Infringement and Non-infringement

The process of determining infringement is usually a two-step process. First, the precise meaning of the terms of the claims are defined in a step known as “claim construction”. Second, the allegedly infringing device is compared to the properly construed claim elements. Dr. Walker has extensive experience in both aspects of this process. He regularly advances claim construction proposals, provides expert declarations to support his constructions, and testifies at deposition.

In addition, he is often called upon to help develop theories of non- infringement, and to identify the “practicing” of each claim element in such a way as to demonstrate infringement.