Sasha Rao

Sasha Rao handles matters involving patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, unfair competition and complex commercial disputes. She represents a variety of companies from startups to multinational giants, but largely focuses on fintech, autonomous vehicles and related technology, and artificial intelligence sectors.

She is also the head of the firm’s nationwide Intellectual Property Practice, which she said virtually doubled overnight with the merger of Maynard Cooper & Gale and Nexsen Pruet on April 1. Now heavily involved in integrating the team, she called the transition an “exciting time.”

“I’ve built a team of over 45 IP attorneys and professionals. I am responsible for helping everyone’s business and growing the firm’s business overall,” she said. “Another hat I wear is working on the operations of the group, making sure all clients serviced by the IP group get excellent client service.”

Her primary role, though, is practicing lawyer. Clients include Block (formerly known as Square) and A3 by Airbus, as well as innovative startups such as an online bank for teens Step Mobile and electric vehicle charging company Volta Industries. She has long represented HP Inc. in several patent infringement matters.

She recently defended HP in a lawsuit filed by Cedar Lane Technologies Inc., a nonpracticing entity that is one of the most prolific at filing patent infringement suits in the United States. Cedar Lane v. HP, 6:22-cv-00040-ADA (W.D. Tex, filed Jan. 11, 2022).

Cedar Lane accused virtually all HP printers of infringing its asserted patents relating to printing and image transfer and conversion technologies. After effective Rule 408 communication with Cedar Lane’s counsel, Rao reached a favorable settlement for HP.

“I’m always amazed by how [HP keeps] developing excellent technology on the printer, laptop, consumer side — so much so that they keep getting sued for patent infringement and have a need for people like me to defend them,” Rao said. “Almost every case touches a lot of different products they make. In that way, many of their matters are highly significant to the company because there is a need to prove the independent development of technology, and there’s a need to defend against what I would call unsound allegations of infringement.”

—Jennifer Chung Klam