McKool Smith Principal Steve Pollinger is a nationally recognized trial lawyer and registered patent attorney with more than 30 years of experience in high-stakes intellectual property litigation. With a deep track record of courtroom wins across software, electronics, and medical device technologies, Steve has been consistently honored by leading legal publications for his excellence in patent and IP litigation.
Check out the Q&A below to learn more about Steve and why he’s ranked as a Chambers USA leading lawyer for intellectual property.
Why do clients hire you?
Clients hire me to give themselves the best possible chance of achieving the best possible outcome. I work tirelessly with my teams to make this happen. Clients value my advocacy skills and my engineering understanding.
Please discuss a noteworthy matter you've handled over the past year along with the results.
Last September I led a trial team in a patent case against Samsung over wireless charging technology for smartphones. The jury returned a $192 million jury verdict in our favor, upon which judgment has been entered. This is one of six 9-figure jury verdicts that I have obtained. The case involved a mix of electronics, software, and electromagnetics, and was fought in the district court and at the patent office.
How do you handle high-pressure situations in the courtroom?
By staying calm and being energized by the pressure. Pressure tends to bring out the best in my performance. I think this is the result of me being somewhat of an adrenaline junkie.