Aparna Rajagopal-Durbin

Associate

621 Capitol Mall
18th Floor
Sacramento, CA 95814

Areas of Law:

Intellectual Property, Litigation

Admitted to Practice in:

California, Wyoming

EXPERIENCE

Business, Civil and Commercial Litigation Experience

Negotiated a significant settlement on behalf of a Native American employee in a racial discrimination and harassment case against an oil company.

Represented a fertilizer company in a misrepresentation matter.

Represented Integrated Microbial Delivery, a Wyoming-based provider of oil extraction enhancement capabilities, in tax-related litigation.

Defended a small microchip design software company and its president against a licensee who brought a litany of claims, including breach of contract, fraud, intentional interference with prospective economic advantage, intentional interference with contract, defamation, and libel. Obtained dismissal of all claims against president.

Intellectual Property Experience

Assisted client Compuware in trade secrets litigation against competitor Serena who built work-alike product to Compuware's, allegedly based on access to trade secrets via customers who were under non-disclosure obligations. Case settled.

Represented client Good Technology in a trade secret action filed by Reserarch-In-Motion (“RIM,” the distributor of the BlackBerry wireless email solution) against allegations that Good Technology had misappropriated RIM's customer lists and reverse engineered part of its software for a competing solution. Assisted client in defeating RIM's motion for a temporary restraining order, which would have shut down most of the company's sales, and later successfully defended Good against RIM's application for a preliminary injunction, which would have had a similar effect. Case settled.

Assisted a software company in case against individual who illicitly posted an on-line message offering the company's proprietary and trade secret source code. Case ended favorably when, after we used provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act to track down the individual, take down his on-line posting, and shut down his e-mail access, the FBI took over criminal investigations.

Represented a major financial institution in a patent infringement case.

Represented a manufacturer of animal vaccinations in a trade secret misappropriation case.

Represented the Northern Arapaho Tribe of the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming in obtaining trademark protection.

Represented developer of clinical trials training software ClinfoSource in obtaining trademark and copyright protection and asserting its rights against infringers.

Represented digital cinema technology company Qube Cinema in trademark matters.

Assisted in defending Napster, Inc. against renowned copyright infringement suit brought by Recording Music Association of America.

Represented Amazon.com in patent infringement suit brought in Chicago involving the personalization and recommendation technology found on Amazon.com's web-site.

Represented local natural food products company California Natural Products in a patent infringement suit against a large out-of-state competitor. Obtained a favorable settlement enjoining competitor from manufacturing its infringing rice syrup sweetener product.

Represented the University of California Regents in a patent infringement suit involving life-saving technology for the treatment of cerebral aneurysm. Obtained a favorable result for the client, including dismissal of competitor's entire out-of-state lawsuit.

Assisted a Manhattan day spa in obtaining injunction against trademark infringer.

Assisted the Office of Legislative & International Affairs of the United States Patent & Trademark Office in development and implementation of domestic and international intellectual property policy, including ensuring member nation compliance with the WTO-WIPO Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights Treaty.

Pro Bono and Volunteer Legal Experience

Coordinated efforts of various nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) involved in Tsunami relief and rehabilitation in India, and acted as liaison between the NGOs, the local government and the Tsunami-affected villagers.

Assisted with public interest litigation against Gujarat, India, for its failure to provide benefits to victims of the January 2001 Gujarat earthquake and drafted a proposed Gujarat Disaster Management Code.

Represented a Palo Alto resident pro bono in analyzing his potential claims against two real estate companies based on his purchase of an illegal duplex residence.

Assisted underprivileged clients in Washington D.C. in obtaining public entitlements and in class action litigation involving deprivation of public entitlements without due process of law.

MEMBERSHIPS

South Asian Bar Association of Sacramento, Member

American Bar Association, Member

EDUCATION

George Washington University Law School, Washington, D.C (J.D., with honors, 2001)

Harvey Mudd College, Claremont, California (B.S., 1997)

University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia (Semester Abroad)

PUBLICATIONS

American Intellectual Property Law Journal, Former Notes Editor

Water Policy (Official Journal of the World Water Council), “Wells are not always water follies: sustainable groundwater policies for the American West,” Vol. 10, No. 2, pp. 145-165, Co-Author

CHARITABLE

Continuum (adult day health care program for people with HIV/AIDS), Board of Directors, Former Member