James C. Duda

Biography:

Jim Duda specializes in legal aspects of technology, particularly those involving complex intellectual property or environmental concerns. As an attorney and professional engineer, he brings to the firm both technical and legal expertise.

Jim currently heads the firm’s Intellectual Property Practice Group and also is a member of the firm’s Environmental Law Department. He represents clients in a variety of matters, with special emphasis on intellectual property protection and commercialization, environmental and technological processes, computer and internet issues, and other complex technical issues associated with commercial or civil litigation, regulatory compliance or corporate transactions.

Jim serves on the board of directors of the WFCR Foundation.

---

Related Professional Experience:

Before studying law, Jim worked as a civil engineer and energy resource specialist with the California Department of Water Resources and as an environmental planner and alternative energy consultant in private practice. After law school, he served as a law clerk to the Honorable Juan R. Torruella of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. Jim moved to Bulkley, Richardson and Gelinas in 1995 from the firm of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher in Washington D.C., where he helped establish that firm’s environmental practice.

Jim has taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and regularly speaks on technology, intellectual property, and environmental issues.

He also is the mentor for a team of students from the University of Massachusetts chapter of Engineers Without Borders developing safe drinking water supply and sanitary systems in a reservation within the Brazilian area of the Amazon Forest.

---

Representative Experience:

Recovered a seven-figure settlement representing a defendant and counterclaim plaintiff in a major commercial dispute in federal court involving proprietary information, trade secrets, innovative, green energy technology, substantial issues of e-discovery and claims under the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and state law corollaries.

Developed intellectual property policy for a medical research facility.

Represented a food product distributor to recover rights to company’s trademark claimed by a competitor and associated damages.

Represented a manufacturer of gas conduit products to recover patent rights to company inventions and in defense of patent infringement claims.

Represented a special committee of a board of directors regarding potential director liability for the company’s nuclear reactor program.

Managed the expert testimony of over a dozen experts in connection with the defense of a petrochemical company in a class action lawsuit involving more than 7,000 plaintiffs.

In pro bono representation, recovered substantial damages against a major municipal police force for civil rights violations in connection with the misuse of the city’s disorderly conduct laws.