William J. Sauers is a counsel in the firm's Washington, DC office, where he practices in the Intellectual Property Group, focusing on patent, trademark, trade secret, and copyright infringement litigation, intellectual property portfolio management, counseling, and licensing, as well as trademark prosecution and clearance, and domain name disputes.
Mr. Sauers has litigated patent, trademark, trade secret and copyright disputes before district courts, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, the U.S. International Trade Commission, and the World Intellectual Property Organization. Most recently, he represented E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company in a trade secret litigation which resulted in a finding of willful misappropriation of trade secrets by the defendant and a damages award of over $900 million after an eight-week jury trial.
His counseling work has involved assisting both large and small clients with the creation and implementation of intellectual property protection and procurement programs such as trademark registration and enforcement programs.
Mr. Sauers received his B.S. in international business from King's College, and his J.D. from the Villanova University School of Law. Prior to joining Crowell & Moring, he was an attorney with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Mr. Sauers is a member of bars for the District of Columbia, the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, and the Supreme Court of the United States.
Representative Cases
- E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company v. Kolon Industries, Inc., et al., No. 3:09-cv-58 (E.D. Va.). Represented plaintiff DuPont in case alleging misappropriation of over 100 trade secrets relating to KEVLAR® fiber technology in one of the largest trade secret misappropriation cases in the United States. Obtained a $919 million verdict against Kolon for the theft of KEVLAR® technology after an eight-week jury trial held in Richmond, Virginia.
- Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems, et al., v. Haldex Brake Products Corporation, No. 1:09-CV-0176 (N.D. Ohio). Represented Plaintiff in patent infringement action involving air disc brake technology and obtained jury verdict of willful infringement and award of attorney fees.
- Rembrandt Data Technologies, LP v. Canon U.S.A., Inc., et al., No. 1:08-CV-1009 (E.D. Va.); No. 2010-1002 (Fed. Cir.). Represented Canon entities in patent-infringement action involving fax modem technology. Won on summary judgment in district court; decision affirmed on appeal by the Federal Circuit.
- CoStar Realty v. Alliance Valuation Group, et al., No. 08-CV-668 (D. Md.). Represented real estate information company in copyright infringement litigation and obtained verdict in favor of plaintiff after bench trial.
- Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems, et al., v. ArvinMeritor, Inc., et al., No. 1:09-CV-0177 (N.D. Ohio). Representing Plaintiff in patent infringement action involving air disc brake technology.
- Nextel Communications v. Motorola , Opposition Nos. 91/161,817 and 91/164,353 (TTAB). Represented telecommunications company in trademark oppositions relating to use and distinctiveness of sound marks. Decisions issued in Nextel's favor in both matters.
- Wilco AG v. Packaging Technologies & Inspection LLC (D. Del.). Represented patentee in infringement action involving package leak testing technology.
- CoStar Realty v. Meissner, No. 08-CV-2766 (D. Md.). Represented plaintiff real estate information company in copyright infringement and Computer Fraud and Abuse Act ("CFAA") litigation.
- Leica Microsystems v. Sherry Krauter, et al., Cancellation Proceeding Nos. 92/044,757 and 91/044,761 (TTAB). Represented optics company in trademark cancellation proceedings regarding likelihood of confusion.
- Goss International Americas, Inc. v. MAN Roland Inc., et al., No. C-013-53 (D. N.H.). Defended printing press manufacturer in patent infringement litigation.
- Thomas v. Sprint Spectrum et al., No. 2:07-CV-231 (E.D. Texas). Defended telecommunications companies in patent infringement action involving technology for controlling provision of utility services to consumers.