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Neel Chatterjee is an internationally recognized technology litigator and trial lawyer. He has a proven track record handling hard-to-win technology cases for some of the world’s leading companies and newest disruptive technology companies. His cases often break new ground in undefined areas of the law or are existential disputes for product lines and new business models. Clients frequently turn to Neel shortly before trial to take over hard-to-win cases. Neel has substantial expertise handling disputes related to patents, trade secrets, copyrights, internet law, and complex commercial technology issues.
Neel has led matters for some of Silicon Valley’s most legendary companies in their most significant technology disputes including groundbreaking cases for Facebook, Oracle, eBay, NVIDIA, LinkedIn, Logitech, and others. Notably, Neel defended Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook in the famed Winklevoss case that later served as the inspiration for the Academy Award winning film “The Social Network.” He helped develop and then later defended eBay with respect to its online transaction business model, creating important fundamental law that validated internet business models related to user generated content. He has prosecuted, defended and tried cases involving global patent litigation for NVIDIA as part of the smartphone patent wars. He also represented Anthony Levandowski, the star engineer at the center of the complex intellectual property dispute between Google and Uber related to self-driving car technology.
Neel previously clerked for the Honorable Patricia V. Trumbell in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California and the Honorable Chief Justice Mary Mullarkey in the Colorado Supreme Court.
Neel has been recognized as a top IP litigator and trailblazer by Intellectual Asset Management, Managing IP, Chambers, Benchmark Litigation, National Law Journal, the Daily Journal, LawDragon and the IAM Global Leaders Guide. Chambers USA has described him as being “singled out for his abilities acting for hi-tech companies in patent infringement claims,” with “the ability to think outside the box” as well as having “in depth knowledge of patent law.” In addition, Chambers USA refers to him as being “knowledgeable, quick to learn, and truly innovative,” with providing “practical, business-minded patent advice” and a sensitivity “to the business objectives of patent litigation." Chambers Global recently recognized Neel as being “sought-after” and “valued for his strategic approach to contentious matters and his strong courtroom advocacy.” Chambers Global further stated that his peers say, “He is an outstanding lawyer who is beloved by his clients. He always puts in extra effort and really knows the law.” Most recently, IAM 1000 highlighted Neel as someone who “gives terrific legal advice and has seen a lot of success in court,” also remarking that “he exudes friendliness and confidence, and has the right personality to remain at the top.” Neel has also been recognized by U.S. News — Best Lawyers in the field of patent and intellectual property litigation. In 2019, “Best Lawyers” named Neel the Trade Secret Lawyer of the Year. He was also named to the 2020 Lawyers of Color Power List and recognized by the Minority Corporate Counsel Association as a 2019 MCCA Rainmaker. Neel has also been repeatedly recognized as one of California’s Top 100 lawyers by the Daily Journal, as one of the top 500 Cyberlawyers by Law Dragon, and has been repeatedly recognized as a leading lawyer in commercial litigation. Neel has also been recognized for lifetime achievement by Narika, a Bay Area-based organization that promotes women's independence, economic empowerment, and well-being by helping domestic violence survivors with advocacy, support, and education.
Neel serves or has served on numerous highly influential boards including serving as the President of the Board of Advisors of Vanderbilt University School of Law. For 23 years, he served on the Board of Directors of the Law Foundation of Silicon Valley. He currently serves on the boards of the Asian Pacific Fund, the Humane Society of Silicon Valley, the South Asian American Justice Collective, and AccessLex. He has also served on the National Advisory Committee of the National South Asian Bar Association. In addition to his board-level work, Neel has served on the Magistrate Selection Committee, the Patent Local Rules Committee, and the Federal Practice Program for the Northern District of California. He is also active in the Sedona Conference Patent Litigation section. As a passionate proponent of diversity, Neel also founded the Bay Area Diversity Career Fair. Neel is a regularly invited speaker on the issues of intellectual property, internet law, litigating high-profile cases, diversity and inclusion, and mentorship. The South Asian Bar Association of Northern California and the North American South Asian Bar Association have each recognized Neel for his strong leadership and mentorship of young lawyers.
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