Morgan Chu

A longtime courtroom giant known for his brilliant grasp of patent issues, intellectual property litigator Chu continued his run of heavy-hitting victories this year by winning one of the largest judgments in California to be affirmed on appeal. He persuaded the state Supreme Court in April to uphold a $300 million compensatory damages award to his client, City of Hope National Medical Center, against Genentech Inc. over royalties due under a technology licensing agreement. And, in January, a federal appeals court affirmed a $94 million judgment for his client, TiVo, in the digital media company's high-profile infringement suit against EchoStar Communications Corp. The damages stem from a 2006 jury finding that EchoStar illegally used the TiVo-invented feature, which allows users to scan through a television program while it is recording.