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Experience:
James R. Ferguson has a practice that emphasizes intellectual property, commercial law and white-collar criminal litigation. He has served as lead counsel for major corporations in patent, trademark, trade secret, and false advertising litigation in the pharmaceutical, medical device, financial, manufacturing, textile, and food industries.
A former federal prosecutor, Jim has also served as lead counsel for corporations, partnerships, and other entities in a broad range of commercial and white-collar criminal litigation, including health care, antitrust, securities, environmental, employment, insurance, tax, civil fraud, RICO, real estate, labor, franchise, and breach of contract cases. He has tried more than 50 trials to verdict and argued more than 40 appeals in federal and state appellate courts. He has also conducted numerous corporate internal investigations.
Jim has been called a "phenomenal" lawyer who "earned his spurs as a 'high energy' operator whose practice includes IP and white-collar criminal defense" (Chambers USA). He is listed in The Best Lawyers in America and Chambers' America's Leading Lawyers for Business.
Notable Engagements:
Represented a Fortune 100 company as lead counsel in the successful defense against a charge for infringement of a business methods patent.
Represented a major branded pharmaceutical company as lead counsel in two patent cases brought under the Hatch-Waxman Act that resulted in a consent judgment of patent validity and infringement.
Represented a Fortune 100 company as lead counsel in the successful defense of a patent infringement action that resulted in summary judgment of patent invalidity, which was affirmed by the Federal Circuit.
Represented a major branded pharmaceutical company as lead counsel in a patent case brought under the Hatch-Waxman Act that resulted in a favorable Federal Circuit ruling and settlement.
Represented a Fortune 100 company as lead counsel in two separate district court actions challenging decisions by the Board of Patent Appeals involving patents for a novel protein (pending) and a genetic diagnostic technology (settled favorably).
Represented a Fortune 150 company as lead counsel in a declaratory judgment action challenging the validity of a patent covering textile manufacturing methods (settled favorably).
Represented a Fortune 100 company as lead counsel in winning a permanent injunction against a competitor that had made misleading comparative statements about the client's product.
Represented a Fortune 100 company in winning a permanent injunction against a competitor that had made misleading statements about the FDA status of the client's drug.
Represented a major pharmaceutical company as lead counsel in defeating an attempt to enjoin the company from terminating its co-marketing and co-promotion agreements with another company.
Represented a California computer company as lead counsel in winning a jury verdict of no liability following a four-week jury trial against a plaintiff seeking more than $40 million in damages.
Represented a Fortune 500 company as lead counsel in winning a jury verdict of acquittal following a four-week jury trial in a criminal case involving allegations of price-fixing and bid-rigging.
Represented a corporate executive as lead counsel in winning a jury verdict of acquittal following a two-week criminal trial involving alleged violations of state and federal environmental laws.
Represented a hospital corporation as lead counsel in winning a jury verdict of liability following a two-week trial in a case involving violations of a non-compete agreement.
Represented a former Assistant US Attorney as lead appellate counsel in winning an en banc Seventh Circuit decision overturning a panel opinion critical of the prosecutor.
Represented an attorney as lead counsel in winning a major Illinois Supreme Court decision in a defamation action involving a lawyer's ethical obligation to report misconduct by other attorneys.
Education:
Northwestern University School of Law, JD, 1976; Articles Editor, Northwestern University Law Review, Indiana University, BA, MA, 1972; Phi Beta Kappa. | 