Benjamin L. Singer

When Benjamin Singer graduated at the top of his class in aerospace engineering, he decided instead that he wanted to be Jack McCoy on "Law & Order." Then after law school, he had trouble finding a job in a city he liked.

"Meanwhile, every patent litigation firm in the country was sending me unsolicited offers," Singer said. "So, I became a patent litigator, and then I spent 10 years trying to figure out how to do something else." But now, after another 10 years, "I'm kind of glad because the technology is more interesting to me."

Over the last few years, patent litigation has slowed down, "in particular the kind that would make sense for boutique firms." In its place, trade secrets litigation has expanded.

Frequently, Singer Cashman defends employees accused of taking secrets from an old employer to a new employer, while much larger firms represent the employers. But after several successes, he said, "now, we actually are representing the companies as well."

One company he represents is Mattson Technology, which makes the machines that make computer chips. He also represents an electrical engineer who joined the company from a competitor, Applied Materials, Inc. Applied has accused Mattson of a scheme to steal its secrets by hiring away several executives and engineers.

His engineer client admitted emailing work files to himself when he joined Mattson. A JAMS arbitrator ruled that the engineer breached his employment contract but that Applied wasn't harmed. The arbitrator's decision is on appeal within JAMS. The lawsuit against the company is stayed. Applied Materials Inc. v. Lai, 22CV007997 (Ala. Super. Ct., filed March 7, 2022).

In another case, the firm represented the former CFO of a company that uses inkjet printer technology to synthesize short DNA and RNA molecules important in genetic testing and research. When she moved to a competitor, she got caught up in a trade secrets battle. "If you're a recent migrating employee in a situation like this, you're going to be part of the discovery," he said. Singer Cashman negotiated a deal that indemnified the client from legal fees and any judgment. Agilent Technologies Inc. v. Twist Bioscience Corp., 16-CV-291137 (Santa Clara Super. Ct., filed Feb. 3, 2016).

Singer also represents someone who as a graduate student created software that replaces expensive sensors used to control small robotics motors and then continued to tinker with the code while employed at a defense contractor. Anduril Industries Inc. v. Salient Motion Inc., 8:23-cv-01650 (C.D. Cal., filed Sept. 6, 2023).

In this case, he said, "you have a company that's doing these billion-dollar defense contracts, having overlapping technical concepts with a company making an electric skateboard."

-- Don DeBenedictis