- Represented a Fortune 500 wireless technology company in patent infringement actions involving cellular and digital network solutions in multiple federal district courts including the Western District of Texas and Northern District of California. In 2022, obtained a motion for summary judgment on noninfringement in the Northern District of California case and shortly thereafter resolved the remaining cases.
- Led the defense of the trade secret case and the patent infringement declaratory judgment action involving Bluetooth and cloud-based telehealth hearing-aid technology and prevailed in a motion for summary judgment that confirmed the perils of seeking both trade secret and protection while simultaneously seeking patent and copyright protection and the importance of NDAs.
- Represented and obtained a favorable outcome for a Fortune 500 company before the International Trade Commission in a Section 337 investigation involving patent infringement by a competitor of patents directed to barcode scanner technology.
- First-chaired and secured a jury verdict of willful patent infringement and copyright infringement against a client’s competitor selling an infringing sea scooter.
- Led a Federal Circuit appeal, which resulted in a seminal decision on claim construction of design patents. Also prevailed in an appeal before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
- Obtained a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction on behalf of clients in a federal action that prevented competitors from misappropriating trade secrets, falsely advertising, unfairly competing and diverting customers and employees, and destroying evidence.
- Obtained a favorable claim construction and a subsequent noninfringement judgment in a case asserting infringement of a patent directed to a personal flotation device.
- Prevailed in a Daubert motion to strike the opinions of a design patent expert; order affirmed by the Federal Circuit.
- Obtained dismissals of patent infringement actions for numerous corporate clients sued by competitors or non-practicing entities involving patent enforcement actions involving software, security and barcode, wearable consumer goods, retail websites, automotive parts, and supply chain logistics technology.
- Obtained a temporary restraining order and a significant monetary settlement against a Fortune 100 company in a trademark infringement action.
Partner,
- Phone: +1 213 576 1026
- Other Phone: +1 650 838 2026
- Email: yuri.mikulka@alston.com
With over 25 years of litigation experience, Yuri defends clients in court actions, arbitrations, and pre-suit disputes nationwide, and has helped clients eliminate billions in potential damages and obtain significant jury verdicts and settlements.
- Represented a leading sports apparel and equipment company in a trademark infringement case.
- Represented multinational companies to customize and implement patent and trademark enforcement programs to combat infringement, counterfeiting, and gray market goods, and to recover damages from infringers.
- Prevailed in motions to dismiss a securities class action filed against Asia-based clients accused of making material misrepresentations in their securities filings.
- Obtained full dismissal, sanctions, attorneys’ fees, and a monetary settlement from a plaintiff who sued a Fortune 500 company client for unfair business practices and fraud.
Yuri Mikulka leads the firm’s Consumer Technology Patent Litigation Team. Yuri specializes in litigation nationwide involving patent, trademark and copyright infringement, trade secret misappropriation, false advertisement, and business disputes. Yuri regularly lectures on IP and litigation topics and has served as a visiting lecturer for UCI Samueli School of Engineering and the University of Chicago Law School.
Yuri is recognized as one of the top intellectual property lawyers in California by the Daily Journal and among the 500 most influential leaders in Los Angeles by the Los Angeles Business Journal. Yuri is also recognized by The Los Angeles Times as a “legal visionary” and by IAM Strategy 300 as one of the “World’s Leading IP Strategists and Global Leaders” for the past three years. Yuri led the defense of a global company in a multibillion-dollar exposure case with parallel trade secret and patent infringement cases selected as one of the “Top Defense Verdicts” by the Daily Journal.
Yuri recently served as the president of the Federal Bar Association, LA Chapter. She currently serves as the Ninth Circuit representative of the ABA Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary that conducts formal evaluation of federal judicial nominees in advance of the U.S. Senate confirmation hearings. Yuri is the co-founder of Carry As You Climb, a women’s leadership group for in-house lawyers and executives.
Bar Admissions
- California
Education
- Pepperdine University (J.D.)
- University of California, Irvine (B.A.)
Memberships
- Federal Bar Association, Los Angeles Chapter, board member; past president
- American Bar Association, Section of Litigation, division director; former council member
- Carry As You Climb, co-founder
- American Bar Association, Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary, Ninth Circuit Representative
- American Bar Association, Litigation Journal, former editorial board member
- American Bar Association, Committee on Corporate Counsel, former national co-chair
Court Admissions
- U.S. District Courts for the Central, Northern, Eastern, and Southern Districts of California
- U.S. District Court for Western District of Texas
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
- Pro hac vice to the U.S. District Courts for the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York, Eastern and Northern District of Texas, and Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and district courts in Florida, Illinois, and Massachusetts, Southern District of Florida