Seth W. Lloyd

Seth Lloyd, a member of Morrison & Foerster’s Appellate and Supreme Court practice, has briefed dozens of appeals in federal and state courts nationwide. Seth has presented oral arguments in the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, the Seventh Circuit, the Ninth Circuit, and the Federal Circuit.

Seth has particular experience in patent appeals before the Federal Circuit. He has authored successful briefs for both patentees and defendants on a wide range of technologies, from medical devices to pharmaceuticals to computer hardware and software. His practice includes appeals from district courts and the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. Seth also has argued four times in the Federal Circuit. His winning arguments include a successful reversal of three PTAB decisions in a consolidated appeal for a computer memory designer. Seth is also an Editor of Morrison & Foerster’s Federal Circuitry blog, which takes a data-driven approach to analyzing the Federal Circuit and its decisions.

Seth’s clients and peers recognize his expertise. Super Lawyers named him a Rising Star, and Best Lawyers in America named him to its Ones to Watch list, both for appellate practice. Seth is also a member of the Edward Coke Appellate Inn of Court and is vice chair of the Federal Circuit Bar Association’s Administrative Law & Regulatory Committee. Seth also practices in the United States Supreme Court. He has drafted petitions and amicus briefs at the certiorari stage, as well as party and amicus briefs at the merits stage.

Before joining Morrison & Foerster, Seth served as a law clerk for Judge Richard G. Taranto of the Federal Circuit. He earned his J.D. from Stanford Law School, where he worked on two successful certiorari petitions and one successful merits case through Stanford’s Supreme Court Litigation Clinic.

Seth also holds a Ph.D. and M.S. in electrical engineering from Stanford University. During his graduate studies, he received the National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship, published 10 peer-reviewed articles, and co-invented the subject matter of five U.S. patents.

Appellate Arguments

• Google LLC v. Netlist, Inc. (13:15)
  (Fed. Cir.) Argued and won affirmance for owner of computer memory patents in consolidated appeals from decade-long reexamination.
• Netlist, Inc. v. Diablo Technologies, Inc. (02:56)
  (Fed. Cir.) Argued and won reversal for owner of computer memory patents in appeals from three consolidated inter partes reviews.
• Nicole K. v. Stigdon (00:16)
  (7th Cir.) Argued for children in Indiana foster care raising constitutional due process claims.
• Strike 3 Holdings, LLC v. Doe (21:40)
  (D.C. Cir.) Argued as court-appointed amicus defending an order refusing a subpoena to unmask an internet subscriber’s identity.
• Harris v. Mangum (00:02)
  (9th Cir.) Argued as court-appointed amicus defending indigent prisoner’s right to a guardian ad litem.
• Netlist, Inc. v. SanDisk LLC (01:53)
  (Fed. Cir.) Argued for patent owner in consolidated appeals raising APA challenges to inter partes review decisions.

Additional Representative Matters

• C.R. Bard Inc. v. AngioDynamics, Inc.
  (Fed. Cir.) Secured reversal of district court judgment of non-infringement, no willfulness, and invalidity, reviving Bard’s infringement case on three patents.
• Washington University v. Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation
  (3d Cir.) Successfully defended trial victory for breach of patent licensing agreement and further won judgment entitling Washington University to prejudgment interest.
• Nevro Corp. v. Boston Scientific Corp.
  (Fed. Cir.) Secured reversal for Nevro of district court judgment of invalidity for indefiniteness.
• Federal National Mortgage Association v. Zabriskie 
  (9th Cir.) Won reversal for Fannie Mae of a Fair Credit Reporting Act judgment.
• Henson v. Santander Consumer USA Inc.
  (S. Ct.) Represented U.S. Chamber of Commerce and others as amici supporting respondent in unanimous affirmance of Fair Debt Collection Act decision.
• BASF Corp. v. Johnson Matthey Inc.
  (Fed. Cir.) Won reversal of an invalidity ruling against patentee BASF, reviving its patent claims.
• C.R. Bard Inc. v. Medline Industries, Inc.
  (Fed. Cir.) Won vacatur of three Patent Trial and Appeal Board decisions on obviousness.
• Altayyar v. Etsy, Inc.
  (2d Cir.) Secured dismissal of securities fraud case for failure to adequately plead falsity.
• Bridge & Post, Inc. v. Verizon Communications, Inc.
  (Fed. Cir.) Secured dismissal because asserted patents claimed unpatentable subject matter.
• Sam Francis Foundation v. Christie’s, Inc.
  (S. Ct.) Successfully preserved Sotheby’s en banc win at the Ninth Circuit based on the dormant Commerce Clause.
• Phigenix, Inc. v. Genentech, Inc.
  (Fed. Cir.) Secured total victory of noninfringement for Genentech.
• Deason v. Fujifilm Holdings Corp.
  (New York Appellate Division, First Department) Secured reversal in major shareholder challenge to corporate acquisition.
• V.L. v. E.L.
  (S. Ct.) As counsel for children’s guardian ad litem, secured reversal of Alabama Supreme Court’s refusal to grant full faith and credit to Georgia judgment recognizing lesbian mother as legal parent.