Mike Bettinger

With years of experience litigating patent and intellectual property cases, Sidley Austin LLP partner Mike Bettinger has built a resume that has seen him try 30 cases to verdict, securing many trial wins throughout the nation.

He has secured wins for technology companies such as Microsoft, Amazon and HP in cases that deal with matters such as telecommunications, networking, software, semiconductors, and solar industries. He also served as lead counsel in many patent trial wins to the International Trade Commission, where he has secured initial decisions of non-infringement that were affirmed for companies such as Kodak, STMicroelectronics and Canadian Solar.

“We have always tried to play at the higher-end competitive cases where there’s something really at stake and it’s most likely to go to trial,” Bettinger said. “We think that’s where our talents as a firm and myself as a trial lawyer are best used. And so far, it’s worked.”

In February, Bettinger and his team successfully defended solar panel manufacturer Canadian Solar in an International Trade Commission investigation, as well as a patent infringement lawsuit filed by its competitor Advanced Silicon Group Technologies (ASGT). Advanced Silicon Group Technologies v. Canadian Solar Inc., 3:21-cv-04514 (N.D Cal., filed June 11, 2021).

ASGT alleged that Canadian Solar had infringed on six patents relating to nanowires/nanostructures, in violation of Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1990.

After trial in April 2022, the judge issued an initial determination that found Canadian Solar’s accused polycrystalline solar cells to not have infringed on any of the asserted patents. ASGT appealed the decision and on Feb. 27, the initial determination was affirmed.”

“There were overtones of it being more than just a patent case,” Bettinger explained. “We actually got retained for that case in the middle of representing Canadian Solar in a previous ITC case. We took the lead and were able to come away with the win before the administrative law judge on infringement, invalidity and domestic industry; which are the three key factors in a case like that. It was just all the way around a good win for us.”

Bettinger also recently represented Microsoft against WSOU Investments in 12 separate patent cases that accused the company’s products and services of patent infringement. WSOU Investments, LLC v. Microsoft Corporation, 6:20-cv-00454-00465, (W.D. Tex., filed April 7, 2021).

He and his team were able to obtain favorable claim constructions and other case events that resulted in the patent cases to be reduced to just seven patents across three separate cases. However, before trial began in June 2022, the cases settled on terms favorable to Microsoft.

“That was very intense litigation,” Bettinger said. “We had done our homework and worked up very good defenses, but at the last minute, WSOU blinked and we were able to settle literally the day before the trial was supposed to start. I would have liked to have gone to trial, but you can’t argue with a good result.”

—Devon Belcher