David R. Sugden dsugden@calljensen.com
Mr. Sugden is the
managing shareholder at Call & Jensen, and specializes in
intellectual property litigation throughout the United States.
Mr. Sugden primarily focuses on protecting his clients’ brands
and has obtained several seven‐ and eight‐figure verdicts and
judgments throughout the country. Mr. Sugden – who was recently
recognized as one of California’s 20 Top Attorneys Under 40
– has served as lead counsel in such cases against software
pirates, counterfeiters, black and gray marketers in California,
Texas, Oklahoma, Florida, New Jersey, Tennessee, and Georgia.
Some of Mr. Sugden’s more notable verdicts and judgments within
the last two years include the following:
$47.4 Million Verdict (Software
Misappropriation / Copyright Infringement): A
unanimous jury ordered a software pirate to pay Mr. Sugden’s
client $47.4 million following a three‐week jury trial in
federal court.
$20 Million Judgment (Software
Misappropriation / Copyright Infringement): A
consent judgment of $20 million against a software pirate
followed a surprise search and seizure with U.S. Marshals
wherein Mr. Sugden and his investigation team were able to
locate and find direct evidence of software misappropriation.
Brand Protection Treatise
(Oxford University Press 2009)
Mr. Sugden is also the author of
Gray Markets: Prevention, Detection, and Litigation (Oxford
University Press 2009), which highlights the strategies and
theories to protect brand owners from the black and gray
marketing of their products.
“In this important work, David Sugden
cogently examines the gray market in light of the globalization
realities and technological advancements of the twenty-first
century marketplace. He brilliantly analyzes the
consequences of this market and offers practical solutions to
reduce the troublesome gray market potential. Gray
Markets features a powerful, in-depth discussion, with
real-life instances, of the theories and remedies for limiting
this questionable avenue for trade. Sugden has fashioned
an enduringly valuable treatment of an urgently pressing problem
for the marketplace.” – Ken Starr, former Court of
Appeals judge, Solicitor General, and Independent Counsel
“David Sugden's book is by far the
best legal resource for addressing gray market issues available.
Mr. Sugden is clearly an expert in the various remedies
available to victims of gray market activities and provides
concise guidance for counsel and business executives faced with
these challenges. It is broad enough in scope to cover most
situations but short enough to be useful as a handbook..”
- Donald deKieffer, Esq.,
deKieffer & Horgan, Washington, D.C.
Honors and Awards
In January 2009, Mr. Sugden was
recognized in California’s Daily Journal as being among
the State’s 20 Top Attorneys Under 40.
For the fourth year in a row, Mr.
Sugden has been named by Los Angeles Magazine a “Rising Star” –
a distinction reserved for just two and one‐half percent of the
attorneys in Los Angeles and Orange County. Rising Stars are
lawyers who are under 40, or who have been practicing ten years
or less, selected for excellence in the practice of law.
Speaking Engagements
Mr. Sugden is a regular lecturer on
brand protection and intellectual property issues. Some of Mr.
Sugden’s recent and upcoming speaking engagements have been the
following:
January 2008: “Intellectual Property
Litigation,” Bridgeport CLE Program (Westin Bonaventure Hotel,
Los Angeles, California)
June 2008: “Gray Gray Go Away: 21st
Century Strategies for Fighting the Gray Market,” Association of
Corporation Counsel of America (“ACCA”) CLE Program (IBM/FileNet
Corp., Costa Mesa, California)
January 2009: “Brand Protection:
Swords and Shields in the Detection and Litigation of Brand
Abuse,” Bridgeport CLE Program (Millennium Biltmore Hotel, Los
Angeles, California)
February 2009: “Brand Protection
Within the Luxury Goods Market,” Global Secure Summit 2009
(Biltmore Hotel, Miami, Florida)
October 2009: “Brand Protection and
Litigation,” Product Authentication & Brand Security Conference
(Hyatt Rosemont Hotel, Chicago, Illinois)
Other Publications
Just or Unjust Compensation:
Effective Strategies to Maximize Recovery in the Intellectual
Property Trial (Intellectual Property Today,
December 2007)
Going Gray? Putting An End To
Illegal Marketing (IP Law 360, September 6,
2007)
Preparing And Trying Intellectual
Property Cases To Win – And Win Big (Orange
County Lawyer Magazine, September 2006)
The Next Best Thing To The Smoking
Gun (Trial Magazine, June 2006)
Section 2019.210: A Sword, Not A
Shield, (Orange County Lawyer Magazine, May
2006)
Defending and Deterring Drive‐By
ADA Lawsuits (Federal Bar Association
Newsletter, February 2005)
Solid Defenses to the Liquidated
Damages Class Action (Daily Journal, April
2002)
Counter‐Attack: Consumer
Protection Lawsuits Must Be Defended Aggressively
(Daily Journal, July 2002)
License to Harass: California Law
Provides Defendants in Frivolous Lawsuits with Needed Ammunition
(Verdicts and Settlements, June 2000)
Education and Background
Originally from Vancouver, British
Columbia, Mr. Sugden first came to California to play NCAA
Division I baseball at Pepperdine University in Malibu. As a
senior, Mr. Sugden was named to the “All‐West Coast Conference
Team.”
Mr. Sugden was then awarded a Doctor
of Jurisprudence degree from Pepperdine University. As a
graduate student at Pepperdine, Mr. Sugden’s honors included
being featured in the 24th Annual Edition of The National
Dean’s List and the 21st Edition of Who’s Who: American
Law Students. Mr. Sugden finished first‐place in The
Annual Dalsimer Moot Court Competition.