Womble Bond Dickinson announced today that Fabio E. Marino, a leading intellectual property lead trial lawyer, has joined the Silicon Valley office as a partner in the Patent Prosecution and Litigation Group. Marino joins from Polsinelli.

Marino tries high-stakes patent, trade secrets, and copyright cases across the United States, with an emphasis on computer-related technologies and arguing appeals at the Federal Circuit. He also has significant experience evaluating and negotiating third-party-funded litigation agreements in the patent litigation space.

“Patent litigation has grown considerably in recent years – both in scope and complexity – and we see tremendous opportunity within the third-party funding space,” said Intellectual Property Practice Group Leader Chris Humphrey. “Fabio’s experience and leadership will be instrumental as we continue to add depth and specialization within our IP practice.”

While at Polsinelli, he served in various leadership positions, including Managing Partner of the firm’s Silicon Valley and San Francisco Offices, Vice Chair of the Intellectual Property Department, and Practice Chair of the IP and Technology Group. He has experience in a variety of technologies including, computer networks, telecommunications, software engineering, e-commerce, internet-related technologies, and artificial intelligence.

“Womble is keenly aware of the evolving needs of clients, as well as the shifting patent litigation landscape, particularly in the third-party funding space,” said Marino. “There is significant demand for these services and I am excited to be a part of the firm’s expansion strategy in this sector.”

The addition of Marino follows a string of strong hires within the firm’s Patent Prosecution and Litigation practice, including veteran intellectual property attorneys Samuel G. Campbell and Eric A. Stephenson.

Prior to his legal career, Marino worked as a software architect. He has taught the Intellectual Property Litigation class at Santa Clara University’s School of Law and coached both Santa Clara’s and the University of California-Berkeley teams in the Giles S. Rich Patent Moot Court Competition.