Latham & Watkins LLP1 is pleased to announce that Sarang (Sy) Damle will join the firm as a partner in the Intellectual Property Litigation Practice in September. Damle expects to practice in the Washington, D.C. office. His practice will focus on high-stakes copyright litigation, rate-setting, and regulatory matters, including disputes involving music, software, information technology, and the internet.
Damle most recently served as General Counsel and Associate Register of Copyrights at the US Copyright Office, the federal agency charged with administering the country’s copyright regime. In that role, he provided guidance on the full suite of responsibilities the Copyright Office discharges—from the promulgation of industry-shaping regulations, to the resolution of disputes over ratemaking and registration, and beyond. Damle also played a critical inter-governmental role, advising and assisting Congressional offices, the Department of Justice, and other federal agencies on matters implicating federal copyright policy. From 2006 to 2013, he served as an appellate litigator in the Department of Justice’s Civil Division, where he was lead counsel in more than 40 appeals, with a focus on intellectual property, separation of powers, and administrative law matters.
Michael Egge, Office Managing Partner of Latham & Watkins in Washington, D.C., said: “We are delighted to welcome one of the nation’s most prominent copyright practitioners to our team. Sy is a game-changer in the copyright space because of his unique and varied insight and experience across copyright policy, regulation and federal court litigation. We will deliver phenomenal results to our clients by drawing on Sy’s extraordinary experience in Washington, including as General Counsel of the US Copyright Office. We are excited to welcome him to our team.”
Jennifer Barry, Global Co-Chair of the firm’s Intellectual Property Litigation Practice, added: “Sy is ideally positioned to help our clients navigate a rapidly evolving copyright regime. Unprecedented legal questions have arisen in the age of digitization, particularly within the arts and technology sectors. Sy’s pragmatic and forward-thinking approach to the law will be an essential resource for our clients as the stakes continue to rise in IP disputes.”
Andy Gass, a San Francisco partner and leading copyright litigator, said: “Sy has spent years engaging at the highest levels with the suite of challenges our clients face—from navigating rate-setting proceedings in the music industry to software licensing disputes and beyond. He will be a uniquely valuable addition to our team.”
Damle is the fourth prominent lawyer to join Latham’s Intellectual Property Litigation Practice in Washington, D.C. in recent months, following the arrivals of Tara D. Elliott, Jamie Underwood, and Kevin Wheeler.
“I am honored to be joining Latham & Watkins’ stand-out team of IP litigators,” Damle said. “The firm has earned a reputation as a uniquely influential, up-and-coming leader in the copyright field, offering a dynamic, cross-disciplinary practice. I look forward to collaborating with my Latham colleagues on some of the most cutting-edge and crucial legal matters facing clients.”
Damle previously clerked for Judge Sandra Lynch of the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. He received his undergraduate degrees in engineering and economics from the University of Pennsylvania in 1999, and he graduated first in his class from the University of Virginia School of Law in 2005. Prior to attending law school, Damle was a software developer.
Source: www.lw.com
