Fenwick & West

Firm overview:

Rooted in Silicon Valley with a history dating back to the 1960s, where its first client was Apple, Fenwick & West is a premier destination for technology and life sciences companies. This heritage allows the firm to anticipate client needs and provide practical business judgment, prioritising concise, actionable advice over lengthy memos. Firm partner and industry co-lead for games, blockchain and cryptocurrency, Mark Jansen, emphasised that the answer for a client is “never a no”.

This year the firm has secured a Highly Recommended ranking, affirming its position as a market leader, particularly for innovative technology and life sciences companies. The firm is consistently recognised for both its comprehensive prosecution practice and its sophisticated approach to contentious matters, which often centres on effective dispute resolution.

The practice boasts a strong national footprint, with six offices showing significant activity in trademark matters, including Mountain View, San Francisco, Santa Monica, New York, Washington, DC, and Seattle. Fenwick’s trademark practice is supported by 12 partners and 37 other lawyers involved in the practice area. The firm is known for operating as a “well-oiled machine”, integrating IP, M&A, capital markets, and litigation teams to provide holistic support.

Fenwick distinguishes itself as a go-to firm for innovative companies leveraging emerging technologies. The firm advises on first-of-their-kind legal issues, new business models, and legal grey areas where technology outpaces regulation. This future-orientated approach is evidenced by the firm’s continuous engagement with cutting-edge areas, including advising on terms of use for companies like OpenAI. The firm manages a significant global portfolio, handling over 20,151 active international trademark applications and registrations, along with 3,505 active national applications and registrations.

Team overview:

Mark Jansen is recognised as an Outstanding individual in the Non-Contentious category. He has extensive experience with innovative technologies, including AI, blockchain, virtual/augmented reality, and e-commerce. In the US he has a nationwide leadership role as co-lead for the firm’s Games and Blockchain & Cryptocurrency industry groups. He is regarded as one of the most trusted names in the Web3 space, representing clients like Offchain Labs, Coinbase, Sui, and Ape Foundation.

Jansen’s forward-thinking initiatives, such as introducing the novel proposal of verification marks in Web3, position him as a central figure shaping the future of trademark law in this digital landscape. Jansen is respected by peers, with a rival firm submission noting that he is “appropriately ranked” based on his “excellent reputation”.

Partner Karen Webb is listed as Highly Recommended in Non-Contentious. Webb advises established and startup companies on brand strategy and the protection of brand assets, and has extensive experience in the social media and internet space.

Other key partners include Eric Ball, a litigator who served as co-lead on the Yuga litigation, and Connie Ellerbach, the head of the Trademark Department.

Key matters:

• NVIDIA: Worldwide trademark portfolio management

Under the leadership of Mark Jansen, the team manages and enforces NVIDIA’s worldwide trademark portfolio, providing proactive, preventive counselling and risk mitigation. This work is essential in securing the brand of NVIDIA, which became the world’s most valuable company—valued at over $4 trillion—in 2025. Mark Jansen adapted the strategy to protect NVIDIA’s expansion into cutting−edge technologies like AI for autonomous vehicles, datacentres, and robotics, and has helped integrate brands from acquisitions, including the $7 billion acquisition of Mellanox Technologies.

• Meta Platforms (fka Facebook) and Meta Reality Labs: Portfolio management and enforcement

Mark Jansen has played an integral role in advising Meta since its infancy, including extensive counsel on the worldwide portfolios of Meta’s Reality Labs, such as the Oculus (AR/VR) and Portal (video calling) brands. Jansen assisted Meta with its rebrand across its AR/VR and hardware product roadmap, managing over 600 active filings and securing major enforcement wins.

• Yuga Labs d/b/a Bored Ape Yacht Club: Trademark Litigation

Fenwick’s trademark litigation team obtained a significant final judgment for Yuga Labs, the foremost player in NFTs/gaming, in a first-of-its-kind case involving knock-off NFTs. The team successfully overcame a motion to dismiss relying on First Amendment and fair use defences.

The victories secured included a novel injunction requiring the defendants to transfer infringing assets, including websites, social media accounts, and the smart contract used to mint the NFTs, and requiring them to burn infringing NFTs still in their possession. The judgment awarded disgorgement of $1.38 million and over $7.3 million in attorneys’ fees and other costs. The court determined the case to be “exceptional” under the Lanham Act. This result established a precedent-setting trademark ruling in the evolving Web3 space.

Clients:

Anduril Industries, Churchill Downs, Cisco Systems, Meta Platforms, NVIDIA, Yuga Labs