Howard J. Susser

Partner | Chair, IP Litigation

overview

Howard Susser has more than three decades of experience as an intellectual property attorney. His litigation practice focuses on disputes involving patent, trademark, false advertising, unfair competition, copyright, licensing, trade secret, employment, and antitrust laws. A member of the Patent Bar with an engineering background, Howard has represented clients in the nation’s courts for clients from such industries as life sciences, pharmaceuticals, biotech, medical devices, chemicals, computer hardware and software, telecommunications, electronics, e-commerce, and many others.

If litigation cannot be avoided through alternative dispute resolution techniques or negotiation, he brings a hands-on, detail-oriented style to the table, and develops close client relationships to understand and efficiently achieve a client’s business objectives.  Howard is also highly skilled in commercial arbitration and mediation proceedings of IP disputes.

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education

J.D., George Washington University

B.S., with High Honors, Slade Scholar, Chemical Engineering, Rutgers University

admissions

Massachusetts, Federal Circuit

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

experience

  • Lead counsel in patent infringement suit regarding heavy machinery and joystick electronics.
  • Lead counsel on design patent suits regarding LED lighting fixtures.
  • Lead counsel in trade secret, copyright and unfair competition suit regarding industrial computer software.
  • Lead counsel in patent infringement litigation involving database management systems and web-based spreadsheet services.
  • Lead counsel for plaintiff in patent infringement suit on cell phone communication protocols.
  • Lead counsel for plaintiff in patent infringement suit on cable television communication protocols.
  • Lead counsel for plaintiff in patent infringement suit on 3-D scanning metrology devices.
  • Counsel for defendant weapons accessories manufacturer in contract and trade secret suit.
  • Lead counsel for defendant in patent infringement suit on plastic injection molding container manufacturing.
  • Lead counsel for large, international fuel additives defendant in false advertising suit on petroleum dyes.
  • Counsel for plaintiff in patent infringement suit on crystalline forms of pharmaceuticals and processes.

articles

articles

Mr. Susser has written articles for such publications as the WPI Venture Forum newsletter, Vantage; the Boston Society of Civil Engineers newsletter; the American Bar Association Annual Review; Mass High Tech; New England In-House; and the Boston Bar Journal.

Contract Rights Vs. Patent Invalidity: 2 Key Cases To Watch,” Co-Author, Law360, June 2021

quotes

Mr. Susser has been quoted in Pharmawire, Bloomberg BusinessweekInfoWorld, Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, and MetroWest Daily News.

Antitrust Class Action vs. Drugmaker Can Proceed,” Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, December 2020

Dismissal of Sanofi Antitrust Suit Reversed,” Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, February 2020

interviews

“Q&A with Howard Susser and Brooke Penrose, IP Attorneys at Burns & Levinson,” Boston Citybizlist, March 2021

“Tech Sees Opportunity for ‘Asymmetric War’ in NPE Antitrust Suit,” Managing IP, November 2020

“A Winning Combination: Patent Prosecution and Litigation,” Corporate Counsel Business Journal, September-October 2019

speaking engagements

“IP and Cybersecurity: Critical Points on Data Misuse,” Webinar Host, Burns & Levinson’s Intellectual Property Group, March 2021

4D Meets AI Conference, Guest Speaker, Life Science Nation, September 2020

“Founder’s Workshop: Startup Fundamentals and Essentials”, Speaker, Tufts School of Engineering, February 2020

Mr. Susser has been invited to speak at events by various institutions, including the New England Business Association, the West LegalEd Center, and the Institute for Economic Development.

Guest lecturer, Tufts University and Babson College.