Litigation Experts from WilmerHale Honored in The American Lawyer's Litigators of the Week for Significant Victories with Apple and PNC
In a remarkable span of just two business days, Mark Fleming and his team at WilmerHale secured two major appellate victories in high-stakes patent cases for clients Apple and PNC Bank. These victories, which involved arguments before the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, resulted in the overturning of more than $500 million in damages.
The first victory came on June 12, when the Federal Circuit overturned nearly $223 million in jury verdicts awarded to USAA, in a case involving PNC Bank. The court found that the asserted patents in the PNC Bank case were directed to abstract ideas and lacked an inventive concept, making them ineligible under Section 101.
Just four days later, on June 16, the Federal Circuit overturned a $300 million infringement verdict secured by Optis Cellular Technology, in a case involving Apple. The Federal Circuit's decision in the Apple case addressed critical issues surrounding standard-essential patents and damages admissibility.
Mark Fleming, Partner and co-chair of WilmerHale's Appellate and Supreme Court Litigation Practice, led the appellate strategy in both cases and worked closely with the firm's trial teams to ensure seamless coordination from trial through appeal. The WilmerHale trial and appellate teams involved a deep bench of attorneys across multiple offices, including Gregory Lantier, Andrew Danford, Brittany Amadi, David Cavanaugh, Joseph Mueller, Mark Selwyn, Timothy Syrett, Heath Brooks, Ravi Deol, Derek Gosma, Makenzi Herbst, Greg Israelsen, Amy Mahan, Joey Meyer, Alex Nemtzow, Jerry Salvatore, Hannah Santasawatkul, and Allison Schultz.
The clients' in-house legal teams provided strategic insights throughout the cases. WilmerHale collaborated with co-counsel at Gillam & Smith and Munger, Tolles & Olson.
These cases underscore Fleming's expertise in patent litigation, particularly in leveraging appellate advocacy to overturn substantial patent infringement verdicts involving complex technology and significant financial stakes. The outcomes were significant enough to earn Fleming and his teams recognition as “Litigators of the Week” by *The American Lawyer*'s Litigation Daily in July 2025.
For more insights from Partner Mark Fleming, readers can refer to the full Q&A with him on Litigation Daily.
[1] The American Lawyer's Litigation Daily, "WilmerHale Wins Big for Apple and PNC Bank in High-Stakes Patent Cases," July 2025,
[2] The American Lawyer's Litigation Daily, "WilmerHale Secures Major Appellate Victory for PNC Bank in Patent Case," July 2025,
[3] The American Lawyer's Litigation Daily, "WilmerHale Wins Major Appellate Victory for Apple in Patent Case," July 2025,
- In the patent case for PNC Bank, the overturning of more than $223 million in jury verdicts by the Federal Circuit was a result of litigation that highlighted the ineligibility of the asserted patents under Section 101, due to their abstract ideas and lack of inventive concept.
- The legal team at WilmerHale, led by Mark Fleming, also secured a significant win for Apple in a patent case, where the Federal Circuit overturned a $300 million infringement verdict, demonstrating expertise in patent litigation and its ability to leverage appellate advocacy in complex business and finance matters.
