Eric Sophir is a partner with Foley & Lardner LLP. He is a member of the firm’s Electronics Practice. Eric counsels clients on protecting innovations, gaining market share, the risks and value associated with acquiring, licensing or otherwise commercializing a patent portfolio; resolving patent disputes and monetizing patents. His practice includes patent preparation and prosecution; infringement and validity analysis in patent litigation; licensing and selling; due diligence; clearance and landscape analysis; and post-grant proceedings. He also provides advice on prosecution strategies to better protect a product or more effectively deter competitors. His practice has a particular emphasis on portfolio development, including invention harvesting and patent filing strategies. Eric's clients range from startups to Fortune 50 companies.
Eric has litigation experience and has worked in complex patent disputes at the federal district courts and Federal Circuit, arbitration and re-examination proceedings. He has also conducted analyses and prepared opinions regarding patent infringement, invalidity and enforceability. Eric’s practice also includes counseling clients in offensive and defensive actions involving competitors as well as non-practicing entities (NPEs).
Earlier in his career, Eric was an extern for Judge Randall Rader (ret), former chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. During law school, Eric was a senior editor for IDEA: The Journal of Law and Technology. He also received the highest grade in his "Trademark and Unfair Competition Law" class and later served as a teaching assistant.
While studying engineering at Cornell University, Eric conducted research for Professor L. F. Eastman regarding the growth and use of gallium nitride, a III-V semiconductor. One aspect of the research was attempting to grow a semiconductor that would emit a wavelength suitable for blue light.
