Steven Pepe

Partner
Pepe Steven

Overview

Steven Pepe is a trusted advisor for technology companies and intellectual property owners in high-stakes patent disputes, helping them resolve complex, multi-patent conflicts by preparing cases for trial and positioning them to achieve business-driven outcomes, whether through verdict or strategic resolution.

Trial readiness defines Steve’s approach. An accomplished trial lawyer with more than 25 years of experience and more than a dozen trials across district courts and the International Trade Commission, he serves as lead or co-lead counsel in matters where outcomes depend on being prepared to take a case through trial.

Steve distinguishes his approach by preparing cases to be tried, not simply positioned for settlement. He and his team develop the factual and technical record needed to present at trial, creating leverage that often drives favorable resolutions at key inflection points, including on the courthouse steps.

Standards-essential patent disputes are a core pillar of his practice. Steve has handled SEP matters since 2007 and has helped shape the law governing damages in these cases, including work adopted by a federal court in early FRAND decisions involving telecommunications standards.

Working across district courts, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, and international jurisdictions, Steve coordinates multi-forum strategies in disputes spanning the United States, Europe and Asia, aligning timing, claims and defenses to support global resolution.

Having represented both operating companies, ranging from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies, and patent holders, Steve brings insight into how each side evaluates risk and leverage, allowing him to anticipate opposing strategies and align litigation with clients’ broader business objectives related to their telecommunications, consumer electronics and imaging technologies.

Outside the office, Steve is a devoted baseball fan who follows fantasy sports and enjoys spending time with his family.


  • Lead trial for a communications technology client in a breach of contract and promissory estoppel case against a multinational telecommunications company. Successfully secured a $23 million jury verdict for the client.
  • Lead counsel for a communications technology client in two patent infringement actions against two major telecommunications equipment vendors, resulting in highly favorable settlements on the eve of trial. The disputes involved infringement of multiple patents by LTE and WCDMA base stations.
  • Counsel for a Japanese intellectual property company in successfully asserting standard essential patents relating to 4G/LTE and 5G infrastructure products against two major telecommunications equipment companies.
  • Lead counsel for an automotive technology company in a global dispute with a competitor involving litigation in US district court, the PTAB, Germany, and China. Led mediation resulting in a favorable global settlement.
  • Co-lead counsel on behalf of a major electronics manufacturer in a case relating to digital camera, imaging, and optics technology. Successfully obtained dismissal for lack of patent subject matter eligibility, affirmed on appeal.
  • Co-lead counsel in a case involving patents directed to image sensors and camera modules. Successfully invalidated a patent before a jury in a six-day trial.
  • Co-lead counsel representing a Japanese intellectual property company at a jury trial asserting standards-essential patents related to the 4G/LTE telecommunications standard. Achieved a favorable jury verdict and damages award.
  • Lead counsel in a multi-case suit involving nine patents covering LED technology, resulting in a favorable settlement for the client.
  • Lead counsel in a suit involving 11 patents and related IPRs concerning image sensor technology.
  • Co-lead counsel for a multinational electronics company in an ITC investigation involving wireless devices and technology standards.
  • Counsel representing a technology company in an ITC investigation concerning flash memory, including participation in a five-day trial.
  • Lead counsel representing a technology company in a breach-of-contract appeal at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
  • Lead counsel in an ITC investigation involving flash memory technology on behalf of a semiconductor manufacturer.
  • Counsel in a two-patent ITC dispute involving genetically-modified bacteria for the production of a chemical ingredient, securing initial determination of no violation and both patents found invalid and not infringed.
  • Co-lead counsel representing a cybersecurity solutions provider in a series of district court actions and parallel PTAB proceedings involving out-of-band authentication technology.
  • Managed and co-led a global team for a telecom equipment company in litigation against a major software company involving over 30 patents essential to industry standards, across multiple jurisdictions including the ITC and federal courts. Included novel FRAND issues and multiple trials.
  • Defended a major electronics company in an ITC investigation relating to television tuners, securing summary determination of non-infringement for a design-around product.
  • Co-lead counsel for a telecom equipment company in an ITC investigation against a rival manufacturer, including a global settlement shortly before the Markman hearing.
  • Managed and co-led a team for a telecom equipment company in multiple litigations involving patents essential to wireless technology standards.
  • Counsel for a Japanese intellectual property company in a district court suit involving LTE standard essential patents.
  • Counsel for a major technology corporation in a patent infringement and false advertising suit involving IoT technology.
  • Counsel for a multinational electronics conglomerate in a ten-patent lawsuit, multiple inter partes reviews, and appeals relating to mesh network technology.
  • Lead counsel in an image processing patent dispute filed in the Eastern District of Texas.
  • Lead counsel for an electronics brand in an ITC litigation relating to patents covering digital televisions and broadcasting standards.
  • Counsel for an industrial gases and engineering company in multi-district litigation involving systems for controlled gas discharge. Invalidated competitor patents, and secured a jury verdict of infringement and patent validity after trial.
  • Represented a consumer goods company in a three-week jury trial on four patents relating to manufacturing processes.
  • Co-lead counsel in successful litigation relating to telecommunications patents and product features.
  • Co-lead counsel in successful litigation involving a patent for centralized data collection.
  • Co-lead counsel in resolved litigation involving semiconductor processing patents.
  • Managed and co-led a global technology company’s team in multiple litigations against a major software company involving over 30 patents, including those essential to industry standards such as wireless communications and video compression. The dispute involved proceedings in various U.S. jurisdictions and included novel FRAND issues and multiple trials.
  • Co-lead counsel for a major telecommunications company in an ITC investigation involving patents pertaining to wireless device standards, including participation in an eight-day trial.
  • Co-lead counsel for a telecommunications company in an ITC investigation against a competitor involving patents directed to wireless device features, including settlement as part of a global resolution prior to a key hearing.
  • Managed and co-led a technology company's team in litigations against another telecom corporation involving over 20 patents essential to wireless device standards in various federal jurisdictions.
  • Represented a leading telecommunications company in litigation concerning multiple patents related to telecommunication products and features.
  • Represented an industrial and specialty gases company in an eight-day jury trial and hearings concerning patents related to systems for controlled gas discharge.
  • Represented a consumer goods company in a multi-week jury trial involving patents relating to advanced manufacturing processes for razors.
  • Represented an electronics company in litigation involving patents essential to digital televisions and broadcasting standards.
  • Represented a semiconductor equipment supplier in litigation on patents related to semiconductor processing.
  • Represented the same semiconductor equipment supplier in related legal matters involving equipment patents.
  • Represented an electronics company in litigation concerning digital television patents.
  • Represented an electronics manufacturer in disputes over patents for LCD and plasma televisions.
  • Represented a software company in litigation on patents relating to centralized data collection via the internet.
  • Represented a watch maker in patent disputes involving GPS-based performance measurement systems.
  • Represented a watch manufacturer in litigation over patents related to physiological monitoring systems.
  • Represented a specialty materials company in litigation on patents involving safety valve technology.
  • Represented a software company in litigation relating to handheld patient diary technology.
  • Represented a defense contractor in litigation over patents for remote-operated weapon systems.
  • Represented a computing company in disputes over patents for data storage and RAID array technology.
  • Represented a power systems company in litigation regarding uninterruptible power supply patents.
  • Represented an automotive systems supplier in disputes over patents for technologies used in airbag deployment.
  • Represented a business services company in patent dispute involving computerized postage systems.
  • Represented a telecommunications technology supplier in litigation over patents for power converter devices.
  • Represented a telecommunications company in litigation over telephone circuitry patents.
  • Represented a satellite radio company in litigation regarding patents on satellite transmission technology.
  • Represented a telecommunications technology supplier in multi-patent litigation over interactive voice response systems and related technologies.

Education

LL.M., (Intellectual Property), The George Washington University Law School

J.D., Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center, cum laude, Editor, Touro Law Review

B.S., (Electrical Engineering), The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art

Admissions

New York

Connecticut

Supreme Court of the United States

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit

U.S. Court of Federal Claims

U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas

  • Litigation – Patent “Lawyer of the Year,” Best Lawyers in America, 2023
  • Best Lawyers in America, 2022-2026
  • 500 Leading Global IP Lawyers, Lawdragon, 2026
  • Leading Litigators in America, Lawdragon Top 500 Litigators in America, 2022-2025
  • Legal 500, 2020-2025
  • Super Lawyer – Patents, 2013-2025
  • Patent Star, Managing Intellectual Property, 2022-2025
  • The World's Leading Patent Practitioners, IAM Patent 1000, 2020-2026

  • Presenter, “Licensing Negotiation Groups – a viable strategy?” Intellectual Asset Management IAM SEP Summit London, September 12, 2024
  • Speaker, “Litigating Standard Essential Patents,” IP Watchdog Patent Litigation Masters 2023, May 16, 2023
  • Speaker, “International Trade Commission: A New Frontier for Enforcement?” MIP IP & Innovation Summit, May 24, 2022
  • Co-author, "US Standard-Essential Patent and FRAND Litigation: Key Developments and Policy Updates in 2025," Intellectual Asset Management, September 3, 2025
  • Co-author, “Second Trump Administration Could Shift SEP Agenda Amid Swift USPTO Appointment and ITC Uncertainty,” Intellectual Asset Management and Global Competition Review, April 22, 2025
  • Co-author, “Recent Global Developments in the SEP Landscape,” New York Law JournalandLaw.com, March 27, 2025
  • Contributor, “What to Know About Licensing Negotiation Groups,” Managing Intellectual Property podcast, November 26, 2024
  • Co-author, “United States: SEPs and FRAND – Litigation, Policy and Latest Developments,” Intellectual Asset Management IAM, October 24, 2024
  • Co-author, “Recent Developments in 5G SEP Litigation Reveal Lessons for Future US Litigants,” Intellectual Asset Management, September 12, 2024
  • Co-author, “High-Profile Investigations at the ITC Indicate its Growing Popularity as a Forum for Obtaining Injunctive Relief,” Intellectual Asset Management and Global Competition Review, April 19, 2024
  • Co-author, “International Arbitration of SEP FRAND Royalties,” Touro Law Review, April 2024
  • Co-author, “How IoT Manufactures Can Use Lessons From the SEP Space,” Intellectual Asset Management (IAM) and Global Competition Review (GCR), December 6, 2023
  • Co-author, “United States: SEPs and FRAND – Litigation, Policy and Latest Developments,” Intellectual Asset Management IAM, October 27, 2023
  • Co-authored, “Legislative reforms to overhaul ‘unfavorable’ patent landscape – for better or worse,” IAM, August 24, 2023
  • Co-author, “Unified Patent Court Strategic Considerations,” IP Litigator, July-August 2023
  • Co-author, “Advantages of Suing US Government for Patent Infringement Under Sec. 1498,”Bloomberg Law, August 30, 2023
  • Co-author, “Legislative Reforms to Overhaul ‘Unfavourable’ Patent Landscape – For Better or Worse,” Intellectual Asset Management (IAM) and Global Compliance Review (GCR), August 24, 2023 
  • Co-author, “Navigating Europe’s New Game-Changing Unified Patent Court,” Law360, July 25, 2023
  • Co-author, “What the Proposed EC SEP Regulation Might Mean for US Litigation,” Intellectual Asset Management (IAM), June 8, 2023
  • Co-author, “Why Evidence Remains King When it Comes to Pricing SEPs” Global Competition Review and Intellectual Asset Management SEP FRAND Hub, March 28, 2023
  • Co-author, “How Agency Activity is Impacting Patent Litigation This Year,” Bloomberg Law, February 10, 2023
  • Co-author, “Juries to play key role in SEP litigation for infringement and damages,” Global Competition Review and Intellectual Asset Management, January 6, 2023
  • Co-author, “Volatile US executive policy landscape means uncertainty for injunctions in SEP litigation,” Global Competition Review, December 21, 2022
  • Co-author, “3 Patent Eligibility Reform Ideas Add Clarity But Bring Risks,” Law360, September 28, 2021
  • Co-author, “Supreme Court Limits Assignor Estoppel, Making Some Patents Easier to Challenge in Court,” IP Litigator, July-August 2021
  • Co-author, “Electric Vehicles, 5G, & IP Disputes,” Bloomberg Law, July 9, 2021
  • Co-author, “The Internet of Things: Application of Current FRAND Methodologies in Developing Markets,” The New York Law Journal, March 19, 2021
  • Co-author, “Licensing and Litigation of 5G Standard-Essential Patents,” Bloomberg Law, December 7, 2020
  • Co-author, “U.K. Supreme Court Permits SEP Holders to Require Worldwide FRAND Licenses,” IP Litigator, September-October 2020
  • Co-author, “Challenges in Quantifying 5G Benefits and SEP Value,” Bloomberg Law, April 8, 2020