Mike McKool, a founder and Chairman of McKool Smith, has been named "Litigator of the Week" by The AmLaw Litigation Daily following his success as lead trial counsel for WiLAN Inc in securing a $145.1 million patent infringement verdict against Apple Inc. You can view the feature article here.
The verdict was announced on August 1, 2018 following a jury trial before Judge Dana M. Sabraw in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California. After 1.5 hours of deliberations, jurors awarded WiLAN $145.1 million in damages finding that Apple infringed WiLAN’s 8,457,145 and 8,537,757 patents, which cover voice over LTE ("VoLTE") wireless communication technology used in many Apple products, including the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone SE, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone 7, and iPhone 7 Plus.
Over the course of his 45-year career, Mike McKool has tried more than 100 jury trials and developed an enhanced understanding of the psychology that governs how juries decide cases. His courtroom prowess has secured substantial verdicts, settlements, and defense rulings for a "who's who" of industry leaders, including major airlines, energy companies, telecommunications firms, investment banking houses, and industrial conglomerates, among many others. He was previously named the AmLaw “Litigator of the Week” in July 2017 following his success as lead trial counsel for legendary music producer Quincy Jones in securing a $9.4 million jury verdict against the Michael Jackson estate.
Mike McKool is consistently recognized as one of the country's leading trial lawyers by all of the major legal directories and rankings. He has been awarded Benchmark Litigation's "Lifetime Achievement Award," Texas Lawyer Lifetime Achievement Awards for both "Professional Excellence" and the "Top Verdicts Hall of Fame," and the Dallas Bar Association "Trial Lawyer of the Year" award. Mr. McKool has also been recognized as an "Icon of IP" and "Trial Ace" by Law360, which describes him as "one of the best closers in the business" and notes that "clients bring him in when a trial appears inevitable and they can't afford to lose." Mr. McKool is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and has been selected by the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit to serve on the Federal Circuit Advisory Council.
