McKool Smith, one of the nation's leading trial firms, has announced that Nicholas Matich, former Acting General Counsel of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), will join the firm as a principal in its intellectual property practice.
During his time with the USPTO, Mr. Matich supervised the provision of legal advice and litigation on intellectual property (IP) and administrative matters for the agency, including providing legal advice on patent, trademark, and copyright matters. His responsibilities included supervising more than 130 attorneys and support staff of USPTO’s Office of the General Counsel, including the Office of the Solicitor which litigates IP matters on behalf of the USPTO. Mr. Matich also coordinated with the Department of Justice, Department of Commerce, and other agencies in developing the U.S. position on major IP cases before the Supreme Court and Courts of Appeals. Prior to assuming the role of Acting General Counsel, Mr. Matich served as Senior Legal Advisor in the Office of the USPTO Director, in which capacity he personally briefed and argued a number of high stakes appeals on behalf of the USPTO.
“We are thrilled to have Nick join the firm,” said David Sochia, McKool Smith’s Managing Principal. “He obviously has a wealth of experience at the USPTO, which is an important venue for our clients and our practice before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). He also has significant appellate and administrative law experience and will be instrumental in helping our clients navigate regulatory changes and advance their IP monetization and protection strategies.”
“McKool Smith is at the top of the list when you consider preeminent trial firms,” said Mr. Matich, who will be based in Washington, DC. “The firm’s reputation and track record of success in high-stakes IP disputes is truly exceptional, and it remains on the forefront of cutting-edge litigation, particularly related to disputes involving standard essential patents (SEP) and fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) licensing matters. I look forward to growing my practice with the firm.”
Prior to working at the USPTO, Mr. Matich was Deputy General Counsel at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) within the Executive Office of the President. At OMB, he oversaw attorneys advising on the full range of legal issues affecting the agency and supervised OMB’s legal review of significant regulatory actions by federal agencies. Before joining OMB, Mr. Matich worked in the White House as Special Assistant to the President and Associate Staff Secretary, where he coordinated the vetting of executive orders, speeches, legislation, signing statements, memoranda, and other documents for the President. Prior to his service in the government, Mr. Matich practiced at several prominent law firms and worked as a law clerk for the Honorable Richard C. Wesley of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
Mr. Matich earned his bachelor’s degree summa cum laude from the University of Notre Dame and his law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law, where he was Senior Editor on the Virginia Law Review. Before attending law school, Mr. Matich served in the United States Navy as a Surface Warfare Officer and made several overseas deployments.
With 130 trial lawyers across offices in Austin, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Marshall, and New York, McKool Smith has established a reputation as one of America’s leading trial firms. Since 2006, the firm has secured 12 nine-figure jury verdicts and 14 eight-figure jury verdicts. The firm has also won more VerdictSearch and The National Law Journal “Top 100 Verdicts” over the last 10 years than any other law firm in the country. Courtroom successes like these have earned McKool Smith critical acclaim and helped the firm become what The Wall Street Journal describes as “one of the biggest law firm success stories of the past decade.” McKool Smith represents clients in complex commercial litigation, insurance recovery, intellectual property, bankruptcy, and white collar defense matters.