Partner

Los Angeles, San Francisco

Direct: 213.891.5062

Office: 213.891.0700

sdatta@buchalter.com

Bar Admissions

California, Alabama, District of Columbia, Massachusetts, New York, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

Overview

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Suparna Datta, PhD is a Partner in the Firm’s Los Angeles office and a member of the Intellectual Property practice group. Dr. Datta is a patent litigator and registered patent attorney who represents clients in high-tech disputes before the International Trade Commission (ITC), federal district courts, and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Leveraging her extensive trial experience and background in electrical and computer engineering, she litigates matters involving complex technologies, including semiconductors, wireless communications, medical devices, payment processing, consumer electronics, digital signal processing, graphics processors, telecommunications, consumer electronics, and standard-essential patents.  She leads litigation teams and takes a hands-on role at every stage of a dispute, from early case strategy through trial and appeal.

On the transactional side of her practice, Dr. Datta advises clients on intellectual property (IP) issues in connection with complex mergers and acquisitions, including leading open-source software audits to address licensing and transaction risks, providing guidance on representations and warranties insurance (RWI) claims, and conducting valuation and risk analyses of IP assets.  Clients also rely on Dr. Datta to negotiate and structure patent and software license agreements, SaaS agreements, and royalty agreements. In addition, Dr. Datta has significant experience in patent drafting and prosecution and works closely with clients to develop strategic patent portfolios that support their broader business objectives. 

In her work as a patent litigator, Dr. Datta often draws on her experience as a researcher, engineer, and professor in coding and information theory. During her tenure as a mobile wireless research engineer at Texas Instruments’ Digital Signal Processing Solutions R&D Center, Dr. Datta conducted coding research for 3rd and 4th generation wireless standards, was the lead inventor of U.S. Patent No. 7,680,216 entitled “Adaptive Thresholds for High Speed Downlink Shared Control Channel (HS-SCCH) (Part I) Detection,” and designed LDPC codes for use in mobile wireless and ADSL systems. She also worked with the Multimedia Communications System group at the IBM T.J. Watson Research Center and in engineering roles at companies in the automotive and banking industries, including Ford Motor Company and Delco Electronics Corporation.

For several years after earning her PhD, Dr. Datta served as a visiting assistant professor in the Electrical & Computer Engineering Department of Northeastern University, where she taught undergraduate and graduate electrical and computer engineering courses.

As a Presidential Fellow at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Dr. Datta’s doctoral work in electrical and computer engineering produced new results in the area of coding for nonbinary runlength-limited channels. She wrote a thesis entitled “New Results on Coding for M-ary Runlength-Limited Channels” and authored several publications in peer-reviewed journals related to her work.

Dr. Datta maintains an active pro bono practice, which has included representing immigrant and refugee children on behalf of Kids in Need of Defense (KIND). She has also prepared Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS), I-360, I-485, and guardianship petitions and argued in support of these petitions in immigration courts.

Prior to joining Buchalter, Dr. Datta was a partner at an Am Law 100 firm, and earlier an associate and patent attorney at an Am Law 50 firm. In those roles, her practice encompassed patent litigation at the ITC and federal district courts, and post-grant proceedings including inter partes reviews (IPRs) and ex parte reexaminations.

International Trade Commission

  • Daedalus Prime LLC v. Samsung and TSMC (337-TA-1336) – Represented Daedalus as complainant asserting former Intel patents covering semiconductor transistor fabrication.  Obtained favorable settlement agreements with Samsung after Markman hearing, and TSMC on the morning of the evidentiary hearing.
  • Daedalus Prime LLC v. Samsung and Qualcomm (337-TA-1335) – Represented Daedalus as complainant asserting former Intel patents covering power management techniques in computer processors.  Obtained favorable settlement agreements with Qualcomm after Markman hearing and fact depositions, and TSMC on the initial determination deadline.
  • ZiiLabs Inc., Ltd. v. ASUS, EVGA, Gigabyte, MSI, Nintendo, Nvidia, PNY, and Zotac (337-TA-1099) – Represented ZiiLabs as complainant asserting patents covering graphics processing technology employed in GPUs, laptops, PCs, and video gaming devices. Obtained favorable outcomes in the Markman hearing, motions for summary determination, and various discovery motions. Successfully licensed all respondents just prior to the evidentiary hearing.
  • ZiiLabs Inc., Ltd. v. AMD, Lenovo, LG, MediaTek, Motorola, Qualcomm, and Sony (337-TA-1037) – Represented ZiiLabs as complainant asserting patents covering graphics processing technology. After obtaining favorable outcomes in various discovery motions and the Markman hearing, immediately licensed all respondents on behalf of the client.
  • FlashPoint Technology, Inc. v. HTC, Pantech, Huawei, and ZTE (337-TA-850) –Represented FlashPoint Technology as complainant asserting patents covering digital camera technology found in smartphones. Successfully obtained a recommendation for a limited exclusion order. Licensed all respondents while the Commission’s review of the initial determination was pending.
  • Digitude Innovations LLC v. Amazon, RIM, HTC, LG, Motorola, Nokia, Pantech, Samsung, and Sony (337-TA-827) – Represented Digitude as complainant, and successfully licensed all respondents.

Federal District Court

  • directPacket Research, Inc. v. Polycom, Inc. (NDCA, 19-cv-03918-LHK) – Defended Polycom in a patent litigation case related to multimedia communications across computer networks. Obtained a favorable outcome in a motion to compel or strike the plaintiff’s infringement contentions. Ultimately secured a stay of the patent litigation against the client by drafting substantive arguments in three IPR petitions (IPR2019-01233, IPR2019-01234, IPR2019-01235) that invalidated all of the asserted patent claims.
  • Callwave Communications, LLC v. Google, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon, Ring Central, Telovations, 8×8, and Fonality (DDE, 1:13-cv-00074, 1:14-cv-00397, 1:14-cv- 00398, 1:12-cv-01701, 1:12-cv-01702, 1:12-cv-01703, 1:12-cv-01704, 1:12-cv-01748, 1:12-cv- 01788) – Represented plaintiff Callwave Communications in a patent enforcement action involving location services, call processing (telecommunications), and payment processing. Obtained favorable outcomes in multiple Markman hearings, motions for summary judgment, and various discovery motions.  Successfully licensed all defendants.
  • Employment Law Compliance, Inc. v. Empower Software Solutions, Inc. (MDFL, 6:14-cv-00663-GAP-KRS) – Represented defendant Empower Software Solutions, securing dismissal of a patent litigation case against the client by drafting and prosecuting an ex parte reexamination that resulted in the invalidation of 89 of 94 asserted patent claims.
  • Lupercal v. Regions Bank (WDTX, 6:21-cv-00801-ADA) – Served as lead counsel for defendant Regions Bank in a patent litigation case involving remote deposit capture technology. Drafted a motion to transfer venue and invalidity contentions that led to a favorable settlement agreement for the client.
  • Beyond the Cloud Inc. et al. v. Performance Solutions, LLC (EDNY, 1:21-cv-02979-LDH-SJB): Represented patent owner Performance Solutions, including by drafting infringement and invalidity rebuttal contentions and managing discovery. Obtained a favorable settlement agreement for the client just prior to the Markman briefing.
  • High Sec Labs Ltd. v. iPGARD Inc. and SmartAVI Inc. (DNV, 2:20-cv-01797-MMD-NJK) – Represented defendants iPGARD Inc. and SmartAVI Inc. in all phases of patent litigation with High Sec Labs Ltd. involving secure keyboard-video-mouse (KVM) switches. Managed discovery and drafted infringement and invalidity rebuttal contentions, ultimately obtaining a favorable settlement agreement for the client after the Markman briefing.

Other Representative Matters

  • Represented VeraSci, a neurological drug contract research organization (CRO) based in Research Triangle, North Carolina, in connection with its $330 million sale to WCG Clinical.
  • Represented Franklin Templeton in connection with its acquisition of O’Shaughnessy Asset Management, LLC.

Admissions

  • U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
  • U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York

Education

  • Suffolk University Law School, JD
  • Georgia Institute of Technology, PhD, Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • Georgia Institute of Technology, MS, Electrical Engineering
  • Cornell University, BA, Mathematics, with distinction
  • Cornell University, BS, Electrical Engineering, with distinction

  • Best Lawyers in America “Ones to Watch”: Patent Law (2022, 2024-2026); Patent Litigation (2024-2026)
  • Suffolk University Law School, Legal Practice Skills Best Oral Advocate Award
  • Suffolk University Law School, Legal Practice Skills Honorable Mention Best Brief Award
  • Eta Kappa Nu
  • Tau Beta Pi
  • Golden Key National Honor Society
  • Phi Delta Phi — Legal Honor Society

  • Member, IEEE Information Theory Society

  • Board of Directors, Smile-A-Mile, providing year-round programming for families affected by childhood cancer