Partner
Chris Johns maintains a diverse patent practice, ranging from patent application drafting, international patent prosecution, and strategic portfolio development to district court litigation, International Trade Commission (ITC) investigations, Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) trials, and appeals to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. With more than 15 years of experience in the patent field, his practice touches on nearly all aspects of patent prosecution and litigation. Intellectual Asset Management's Strategy 300 recognized Chris as a Global Leader for 2023.
On the prosecution and client counseling side, Chris has experience drafting, prosecuting, and appealing patent applications related to electronics, software, telecommunications, shipping and logistics, and business methods. He provides domestic and international clients with strategic IP counseling, including portfolio management and drafting strategies. Chris has a particular focus on patent eligibility under 35 U.S.C. § 101 and speaks and writes regularly about this dynamic topic. He co-authored and co-edited a book on subject matter eligibility, a work that covers issues relating to eligibility in more than a dozen countries.
Chris has extensive experience with inter partes reviews (IPR) and covered business method (CBM) proceedings before the PTAB of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), district court litigations, and ITC investigations. His litigation experience extends to pre-trial investigations through trial and appeal. Chris has litigated cases relating to telecommunications, storage systems, display screens and televisions, medical devices, computer software, household goods, and other technologies.
Before joining Finnegan, Chris served for nearly five years as a USPTO patent examiner. He examined patent applications related to cryptography, network communication devices, healthcare systems, financial transaction processing, postage metering systems, and electronic content licensing.
Chris's pro bono activities include representing asylum seekers before immigration courts through Human Rights First and assisting veterans with appeals to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.
NICE Ltd. et al v. CallMiner Inc.
1:18-cv-02024, D. Del., Judge Andrews
NetApp, Inc./HPE et al. v. KOM Software Inc.
IPR2019-00591, -00592, -00594, -00598, -00601, -00603, -00604, -00606, -00607, -00608, PTAB, Judges McGraw, Galligan, Dougal, Fishman
20-2345, -2346; 21-1181, -1075 -1005, Fed. Cir., Judges Prost, Chen, Taranto
Certain Semiconductor Devices and Consumer Audiovisual Products Containing the Same
337-TA-1047, ITC, Judges Essex, Shaw
IPR2017-01544, -01593, -01624, -01637, -01675, IPR2018-00477, PTAB, Judges Beamer, Boucher, Galligan, Giannetti
337-TA-968, ITC, Judge Shaw
3:15-cv-04428, N.D. Cal., Judges Seeborg, Cousins
1:15-cv-00871, D. Del., Judges Stark, Burke
IPR2016-00842, -00843, -00844, -00845, PTAB, Judges Baer, Boucher, McNamara
Articles
The Invention Stack: Harvesting and Protecting Intellectual Property The Invention Stack: Harvesting and Protecting Intellectual Property
May/June 2024
The Patent LawyerEvent
Patent Protection for Software-Related Inventions in Europe and the USA Training Course Patent Protection for Software-Related Inventions in Europe and the USA Training Course
September 14-15, 2023
Hybrid
Articles
Supreme Court Declines to Clarify the Abstract-Idea Exception to Patentability in Interactive Wearables and Tropp Supreme Court Declines to Clarify the Abstract-Idea Exception to Patentability in Interactive Wearables and Tropp
June 13, 2023
Award/Ranking
31 Finnegan Attorneys Recognized by Best Lawyers 31 Finnegan Attorneys Recognized by Best Lawyers
August 15, 2024
Best LawyersAward/Ranking
Eleven Finnegan Attorneys Named to the 2024 IAM Strategy 300 List
Eleven Finnegan Attorneys Named to the 2024 IAM Strategy 300 List
August 14, 2024
IAMAnnouncement
Christopher Johns Named AIPLA's 2023 Mentor of the Year Christopher Johns Named AIPLA's 2023 Mentor of the Year
October 18, 2023
American Intellectual Property Law AssociationAward/Ranking
Seramount Names Finnegan One of the 2023 Best Companies for Working Parents Seramount Names Finnegan One of the 2023 Best Companies for Working Parents
October 12, 2023
SeramountAward/Ranking
10 Finnegan Attorneys Named to the 2023 IAM Strategy 300 List 10 Finnegan Attorneys Named to the 2023 IAM Strategy 300 List
October 5, 2023
Intellectual Asset ManagementCommentary
Eligibility Bill Gives Attys Relief, Even With 'Squishy' Terms Eligibility Bill Gives Attys Relief, Even With 'Squishy' Terms
June 28, 2023
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