Andrea Pacelli, Ph.D., Partner
Andrea Pacelli, Ph.D. is a patent litigator with more than 20 years of experience in high-stakes technology cases, backed by a Ph.D. in electrical engineering and broad expertise in electrical, computer, and software engineering. He represents technology companies on both sides of patent, trade secret, and other intellectual property matters.
On the plaintiff side, Andrea has represented patent owners in disputes against technology giants such as Google, Twitter, Salesforce, and AMD. He was a core member of the team behind ChanBond, LLC v. Atlantic Broadband Group et al., an assertion of broadband cable internet patents against essentially the entire U.S. cable industry, which settled for $125 million mid-trial. During the course of that campaign he defended 13 IPRs, only one of which was instituted (with 75% of claims surviving), and successfully argued validity at summary judgment. As part of that same litigation he also led the representation of the patent owner in opposing two petitions for writ of certiorari to the United States Supreme Court.
Andrea also has extensive experience in defending technology companies, especially international hardware manufacturers, against assertions of patent infringement and trade secret misappropriation in fields such as chip design and manufacturing, semiconductor memories, consumer electronics, and wireless technology. He worked on several International Trade Commission (ITC) investigations, including three ITC trials, in matters involving semiconductor products. He also participated in the defense of a Chinese chipmaker against economic espionage and trade secret charges brought by the U.S. Department of Justice.
In addition to his litigation experience, Andrea is a registered patent attorney who has prosecuted and managed utility and design patent applications in the United States and worldwide. He has also worked on major cross-licensing negotiations and other licensing disputes between large international companies in the semiconductor industry, involving the strategic ranking of hundreds of patent families worldwide.
Andrea’s litigation practice is backed by solid technical credentials. He holds a Ph.D. in electrical engineering, taught circuit design as an Assistant Professor at Stony Brook University, researched semiconductor device modeling at Bell Laboratories, and designed Flash memory cells as a device engineer at Tower Semiconductor. He is a Senior Member of the IEEE, has authored more than 45 refereed publications, and won the Best Paper Award at the International Conference on Computer Aided Design in 2002. In his free time he designs and builds embedded microcontroller systems.
Before joining Hecht Partners, Andrea practiced at leading international firms including WilmerHale, King & Spalding, Goodwin, and King & Wood. He was born and raised in Italy and is a native Italian speaker.
BAR ADMISSIONS
State of New York
State of New Jersey
U.S. Patent & Trademark Office
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
U.S. Supreme Court
EDUCATION
J.D., Fordham University School of Law, magna cum laude, Order of the Coif
Ph.D., Electrical Engineering, Polytechnic Institute of Milan
Laurea (B.S./M.S.), Electrical Engineering, Polytechnic Institute of Milan, cum laude