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Posted in Intellectual Property Litigation Blog, SP News Blog, General Blog

Clients Deserve Results [As seen in Forbes Magazine - April 16, 2007]

April 16th, 2007 by Erich Vieth

According to John Simon, a partner at the law firm of Simon Passanante, “You have one shot trying your client’s case in front of the jury. You either win your case or you lose it. There is no substitute for experience.”

Founded in 2000, Simon۰Passanante has been described by the National Law Journal as one of the “winningest firms” in the country. 

The lawyers at Simon۰Passanante handle intellectual property, antitrust and commercial litigation cases and have extensive courtroom experience representing businesses in high-stakes commercial cases. 

Recently, the firm tried a case in Boston for its client, Custom Hardware Engineering & Consulting (CHE), a third-party maintenance provider. Storage Technology Company (STK), a large manufacturer of robotic tape libraries had sued CHE for patent and copyright infringement. CHE fought back with an antitrust counterclaim for $140 million in damages which, under federal law, could be tripled. After four years of litigation and five weeks of trial, STK paid CHE a confidential settlement amount.

Simon Passanante’s work for CHE is just one example of the cases handled by a results-oriented law firm with a stellar litigation track record.  Earlier in 2006, Simon Passanante successfully represented a cable provider after a large apartment complex breached an exclusive contract between the two parties for cable service.  The firm’s ongoing intellectual property cases involve products ranging from software to consumer products to medical devices to industrial equipment.

Founded by John Simon and Paul Passanante, the St. Louis-based firm has grown to 17 attorneys, with a total staff of 50. John Simon points out that every one of the firm’s lawyers spends time in the courtroom trying cases: “The trial skills of a lawyer are critical to the outcome of cases, whether those cases are tried or settled.  An opponent’s perception of your lawyer’s skills as a trial lawyer substantially impacts the settlement value of your case.”  That most cases are settled before trial “only heightens the need for experienced trial lawyers.”

The firm attributes its success to its focus on the end game: efficiently getting a favorable result for the client.  To do this well, a lawyer must thoroughly understand the business of the client.  Tony Simon, a patent lawyer whose clients have included Converse, Sabreliner Corporation, Enterprise Rent-a-Car and United Airlines, elaborates, “If you don’t have a full understanding of how your client’s business works, you’ll never be able to explain your case in a clear way that a judge or jury can understand.”

The firm’s innovations include offering contingent fee arrangements to business clients.  According to John Simon, “This puts our interests in line with those of our client and maintains the focus on the outcome of the case.”

What drives the lawyers of Simon Passanante?  John Simon explains, “We care about what we’re doing, we’re passionate about it, and we want to be the best.”

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