The Patent 1000 focuses exclusively on patent practice and has firmly established itself as the definitive 'go-to' resource for those seeking world-class legal patent expertise.
Highly recommended - Economic experts
Ankura is distinguished by its collaborative approach; its experts and advisers, who come from many different walks of life, link up seamlessly to deliver solutions to the most complex problems. This works well in the IP sphere, in which the firm’s experts demonstrate sophisticated expertise with respect to the assessment, valuation and management of IP assets on a global basis, along with refined skills in the courtroom. Senior managing directors David Yurkerwich, Michael Lasinski and Kevin Arst anchor the outfit. Part of what makes them all so effective in a disputes setting is their well-rounded view of patents, cultivated through extensive engagement in valuation practice. Managing director Abel Teshome makes his IAM Patent 1000 debut this year on a wave of positive feedback: “Abel and his team are a pleasure to work with; they are top-notch experts who think about every angle and anticipate what the other side will do, to ensure that their work product is bulletproof. They are responsive, creative, efficient and can explain difficult economic concepts in simple English.”
David Yurkerwich is a senior managing director and a leader of Ankura’s IP team. He is based in New York and works closely with companies and law firms throughout the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany and Asia. Mr Yurkerwich is a seasoned valuation and damages expert with over 35 years of experience. He has provided evidence in over 100 disputes and has facilitated global IP transactions. Mr Yurkerwich and his team continuously enhance their valuation models by combining timely competitive information with advanced analytical tools to consider the technical, legal and market risks in IP negotiations and litigation.
Mr Yurkerwich works closely with inventors, owners and attorneys to assess patentability and markets for technologies to build and maintain competitive IP portfolios. He negotiates IP-based transactions and manages joint development, licensing and enforcement activities. Mr Yurkerwich’s expertise includes competitive benchmarking for portfolio development; identification and valuation of tangible and intangible assets; and portfolio analysis for evidence of market use and potential value.
Mr Yurkerwich has provided expert valuation analysis and testimony in patent infringement cases, standard-essential patent FRAND disputes, international arbitrations and other business disputes involving companies throughout the world. This has included providing evidence in matters involving a broad range of technologies and markets. His work often includes the analysis of invention scope, markets and alternatives; the design of apportionment models; the preparation of expert reports; and the delivery of expert testimony.
Mr Yurkerwich received a BS in business administration from the Villanova School of Business and became a certified public accountant at Arthur Andersen & Co. He was a founder of IP-focused consultancy teams at Peterson Worldwide, InteCap, Charles River Associates and Navigant Consulting (which became part of Ankura in 2018). Ankura is a global consultancy with professional teams in Asia, Australia, Europe, India, the Middle East and the United States that collaborate to create innovative customised solutions for clients facing a wide range of economic, governance and regulatory challenges and opportunities.
Ankura Consulting Group is a global consultancy with more than 1,600 professionals and 48 offices throughout the United States, Europe, Asia, Australia and the Middle East. We provide our clients – including Fortune 1000 companies, leading law firms and governments – with a wide range of professional services including IP, finance, strategy and transaction consulting.
Our IP practice focuses on valuation, economic and data analysis, and expert testimony in national and global disputes. Our IP experts have testified in some of the world’s highest-stakes IP controversies, including cases involving patent and trademark infringement, trade secret misappropriation, licensing disputes, tax disputes, bankruptcies and breach of contract matters. Our IP experts have also led significant IP-centric transactions, including IP acquisitions, divestitures, licences, joint ventures and financings.
Our core competency is that we understand how IP can create value in products, companies, and industries. We apply our experience to help clients assess, value and manage their IP assets in today’s global innovation economy. Our experts combine timely competitive information with state-of-the-art valuation methodologies and advanced data and analytical tools to deliver unique insights to our clients.
We are hired not just because of our track record in the courtroom, but also because of our deep experience in managing and transacting the types of assets we are valuing when providing our expert opinions. For decades we have been active in helping companies buy, sell, license out, license in and, when necessary, enforce IP rights or defend their businesses. This out-of-the-courtroom experience is invaluable when explaining our expert opinions on IP issues to juries and other triers of fact.
While we are active in all types of IP matters, our experts have been recognised as pioneers in economic and data analysis and royalty rate determination for standard-essential patents (SEPs), which are subject to fair, reasonable and non-discrimination (FRAND) encumbrances. Our SEP/FRAND licensing dispute work has expanded beyond the mobile device, semiconductor and electronics industries to automotive and Internet of Thing applications. We help companies determine SEP/FRAND rates in US and international litigation, arbitration, licensing-in and licensing-out negotiations, as well as other settings.
We also work closely with inventors, owners and attorneys to assess patentability and markets for technologies to build and maintain competitive IP portfolios. We actively negotiate IP-centric transactions, and structure and manage joint development, licensing and enforcement activities.
We have been involved in IP matters in virtually every industry, including automotive, telecommunications (including mobile devices, infrastructure and service providers), electronics, semiconductors, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, consumer products, food and beverages, publishing, oil and gas, and entertainment.
Our IP experts have held and currently hold key roles in many IP associations, including the Licensing Executives Society (LES) United States and Canada, LES International, the Intellectual Property Owners Association, the American Bar Association (IP Section) and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. We also are certified licensing professionals and certified public accountants and are certified in valuation and forensics. We have been qualified as experts on IP licensing and valuation in federal, state, tax, bankruptcy and international courts, as well as arbitration proceedings and at the International Trade Commission. Our IP experts have been recognised in the IAM Patent 1000 and IAM Strategy 300 by their clients and peers for over a decade.