Frank J. West is a partner, Head of the Litigation Department, and is a member of the Life Sciences and IP Transactions practice groups. Mr. West also serves as the firm’s General Counsel and is a member of the Management Committee. His practice includes district court litigation, Federal Circuit appeals, and 337 investigations before the International Trade Commission (ITC). While he has litigated many types of technologies, ranging from design patents for footwear to pharmaceuticals to semiconductor devices to software, the focus of his litigation practice has been in the field of chemistry, including pharmaceutical (ANDA litigations) and industrial materials, coatings and related processes.
Mr. West is also a Certified Licensing Professional, having negotiated, drafted, and/or reviewed countless contractual agreements, including agreements related to research and development, intellectual property licensing and commercialization.
Mr. West has a Master’s of Business Administration and has completed the coursework for a Master of Laws degree in securities law. He has practical business experience, having been a small business consultant prior to becoming an attorney. At the request of the consultancy firm, Mr. West was the acting interim president of a startup client company of the firm. These experiences allow Mr. West to see legal issues from a client’s business perspective and to anticipate and advise clients related to litigation and strategies to avoid or reduce those risks both inside and outside of litigation.
Mr. West is an experienced, detail-oriented adviser who carefully and thoughtfully advises clients regarding litigation and transactional matters to achieve each client’s specific business objectives. Recently, Mr. West was recognized by IAM 1000 for these qualities with IAM 1000 noting “West captains the [Oblon] litigation practice; he is renowned for his ability to foresee legal issues from a client's business perspective and advise on risk mitigation strategies both in and out of litigation."
He is also very active in the intellectual property law associations having served in various capacities in the American Intellectual Property Law Association and the American Bar Association – Intellectual Property Law division.
Education
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Georgetown University
- Post J.D. studies in securities law
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University of Kansas School of Law
(J.D.)
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University of Kansas
(M.B.A.)
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Baker University
(B.A., magna cum laude)
Admissions
- Virginia
- Missouri
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
- Missouri Supreme Court
- Virginia Supreme Court
Professional Affiliations
- American Intellectual Property Law Association
- Chairperson, Online Programs Committee 2024-2025
- Vice-Chairperson, Online Programs Committee 2022-2023
- Chairperson, Patent Damages Subcommittee 2019
- Vice Chairperson, Patent Damages Subcommittee 2018
- American Bar Association, Intellectual Property Law, International Law and Arbitration Sections
- Co-Chairperson, Patent Exhaustion Committee 2020-2021
- Licensing Executives Society
- Missouri Bar Association
- Virginia Bar Association
Services
Technologies
Counseling & Strategic Advice
IP Transactions
Litigation
PTAB Proceedings
Technology Transfer
Trademark & Designs
U.S. Patent Procurement (Application Drafting & Prosecution)
