In today's business environment, technology and intellectual property rights are a top priority.

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Overview

In today's business environment, technology and intellectual property rights are a top priority.

Whether a business owns technology or is acquiring rights to use it, it is important to be represented by lawyers experienced in technology transactions. However measured—years of experience, number of lawyers or number and diversity of clients—Perkins Coie is a premier technology transaction law firm. Our group has more than 125 lawyers that concentrate on structuring, negotiating and documenting a wide variety of arrangements to acquire, develop, protect and distribute technologies, both domestically and internationally. These include:

  • Licensing and distribution
  • OEM
  • Consulting and service agreements
  • Development
  • Outsourcing
  • Joint ventures and strategic alliances
  • Manufacturing and supply
  • Internet and e-commerce
  • Marketing, promotion and merchandising agreements
  • IP auditing and counseling, copyright, trademark, trade secret and patent licenses

 

Whether a business owns technology or is acquiring rights to use it, it is important to be represented by lawyers experienced in technology transactions. However measured—years of experience, number of lawyers or number and diversity of clients—Perkins Coie is a premier technology transaction law firm. Our group has more than 125 lawyers that concentrate on structuring, negotiating and documenting a wide variety of arrangements to acquire, develop, protect and distribute technologies, both domestically and internationally. These include:

  • Licensing and distribution
  • OEM
  • Consulting and service agreements
  • Development
  • Outsourcing
  • Joint ventures and strategic alliances
  • Manufacturing and supply
  • Internet and e-commerce
  • Marketing, promotion and merchandising agreements
  • IP auditing and counseling, copyright, trademark, trade secret and patent licenses

 

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We represent emerging and established businesses encompassing virtually every segment of the technology industry, including computer information, hardware manufacturers, multimedia and software developers, publishers, distributors, end users, Internet and online service companies, medical device and biomedical engineering companies, biotechnology and biopharmaceutical companies and institutions, and venture capital firms.

We realize that each client – even in the same line of business– has its own special legal needs. For this reason, we make it a point to understand not only the law but also the business of each client.

Our group is part of a full-service firm, with in-depth experience across a full range of legal areas including tax, securities, antitrust, real estate, corporate finance, franchising, patent procurement and litigation, copyright registration and litigation, and trademark registration and litigation, just to name a few. As a result, we offer clients a comprehensive package of legal services.

Cloud Computing & Infrastructure Outsourcing

Representing both buyers and providers of web and cloud computing services, our technology lawyers have extensive experience negotiating infrastructure outsourcing contracts that strike a balance between integrated service management solutions and meeting robust compliance standards. We understand the various cloud computing service models and the different challenges each model poses to traditional concepts of data ownership and control, contractual rights, privacy and security, law enforcement, e-discovery, intellectual property, and conflicts of law.

Commercial Contracts

We have negotiated thousands of technology-related transactions from both the provider and the buyer sides of the table. Our team possesses deep experience representing startups and Fortune 50 multinational companies in structuring and negotiating contracts involving licensing, intellectual property, and privacy and data security matters. This includes due diligence and post-closing implementation in connection with mergers, acquisitions, and other strategic corporate transactions where patents and other intellectual property assets are key value drivers. We understand the importance of providing practical solutions aimed at getting the deal done, but also the importance of paying appropriate attention to the contractual details. Focused on identifying issues, we also provide risk analysis and practical solutions to mitigate those risks.

Mergers & Acquisitions

We have a thriving technology-focused mergers and acquisitions practice representing leading companies that have IP as a key value driver. Through our long-standing focus on the technology industry, our attorneys have developed a keen understanding of technology-driven deals. Due to our collaborative, team-oriented approach to technology M&A, we are well situated to safeguard our client’s long-term interests and to align our services with our client’s goals, objectives, and high standards. Unlike most law firms, we do not simply rely on others for technical support in these areas; rather, our attorneys understand technology to such a depth that we can fully investigate all the relevant issues affecting a deal. We also offer seamless representation across multiple jurisdictions.

Open Source

Our lawyers have a variety of backgrounds in mobile apps, cryptography, robotics, physics modeling, and quantum mechanics, allowing us to understand our clients’ businesses and business models. Knowledge of how data flows through the product and how applications are interacting by looking at the code provides us with an educated perspective in these matters. We help draft and recommend terms reflecting synergies between community-developed software and proprietary software and have extensive experience harmonizing disparate objectives, including royalty maximization and community adoption. Our team identifies issues early on and performs due diligence to ensure the company complies with relevant requirements and obligations. We also draft and customize open source and proprietary license terms to align with a client’s needs and business goals, understanding that different license terms can dramatically affect the adoption and market position of our client’s software.

Procurement & Vendor Management Programs

We help our clients conduct effective vendor due diligence to understand data privacy and security risk exposure as a result of outsourcing arrangements. With deep experience negotiating contractual provisions and protections in Service Organization Controls (SOC) reports, we ensure that vendor collection and use of our client’s confidential data is consistent with regulatory and public disclosure requirements. We also regularly draft and negotiate website hosting agreements with ISPs on behalf of clients across a broad range of industries.

Product Counsel

Our team has advised public, private, and startup clients on hundreds of product launches related to hardware/physical devices, software applications, and consumer products in the cloud computing, mobile, Internet of Things (IoT), augmented and virtual reality (AR/CE), blockchain technology, and entertainment spaces. In addition to law and technology, we have a deep understanding of business operations; subsequently, many of our clients rely on us to work directly with their internal business units, from engineering, product management, and client services to advertising, marketing, and communications.

Emerging Technologies

The projected benefits of disruptive technology must be weighed against the costs of implementation and regulatory interventions. Our Technology Transactions & Privacy lawyers focus on the legal implications of technology-driven innovations that transform the status quo. We have advised hundreds of emerging companies and multinational company clients on issues in connection with the development of technologies related to:

  • Additive manufacturing
  • Advanced materials
  • Agriculture
  • Artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI)
  • Battery technology
  • Biometrics
  • Biotechnology
  • Cognitive science
  • Climate change technology
  • Cybersecurity

  • Data analytics
  • Digital ecosystems
  • Distributed ledger technology
  • EdTech
  • Energy
  • Extended reality
  • FinTech
  • Food and water technology
  • Human augmentation
  • Information technology
  • Internet of Things (IoT)

  • Medical advances
  • Mobile and cloud computing
  • Nanotechnology
  • Precision medicine
  • Quantum computing
  • Robotics and autonomous systems
  • Sensing and mobility
  • Smart cities
  • SpaceTech
  • Wireless technology
We also advise clients as they develop products and services driven by the convergence of multiple technologies. As the hyperconverged infrastructure market continues to grow, we advise clients on implications related to algorithmic bias, algorithmic collusion, cyber security, Americans with Disability Acts (ADA) accessibility, product liability, and law enforcement access, among others. We have seen and worked under the hood of almost every emerging technology application in the marketplace, allowing us to offer an informed perspective on the intersection between game-changing tech, traditional laws, and the evolving regulatory landscapes.

Recognition & Rankings

  • Named “Law Firm of the Year” in Technology Law by Best Lawyers, 2024

  • Ranked Tier 1 nationally for both Information Technology Law and Technology Law by U.S. News—Best Lawyers® in 2012-2024

  • Ranked nationally in Nationwide Technology by Chambers USA, 2003-2023

  • Ranked globally for Fintech Legal: Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies by Chambers Global, 2022-2024

  • Named one of the "30 Best Workplaces for Consulting & Professional Services" by Fortune, 2017-2023

  • Recognized in JD Supra’s Readers’ Choice Awards for the Digital Currencies: International Actions and Regulations Tracker, 2018

  • Named a “Trailblazer in Cryptocurrency, Blockchain and Fintech” by the National Law Journal, 2018

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