John C.Evans Ph.D.

Partner

Cleveland + 1.216.586.7126

John Evans has consistently delivered results for clients in dozens of intellectual property matters, including summary judgment defense wins in recent high-stakes patent infringement cases.

John has handled all phases of patent litigation, from prelitigation investigations up to appeal. He has briefed and argued Markman and summary judgment, handled expert and fact depositions, served on trial teams in bench and jury trials, and authored many important briefs. Recent highlights include two summary judgment wins on behalf of accused infringers, an across the board ruling of noninfringement in one of the highest stakes design patent infringement cases in U.S. history and an early invalidity judgment at the Markman stage in a pharmaceutical patent case. He also recently won favorable claim construction rulings and successfully defeated petitions seeking institution of inter partes review.

John's technical experience in litigation matters covers many fields, including pharmaceuticals, surgical implants, flash memory, computer peripherals, digital televisions, integrated circuits, and insurance, as well as vacuum cleaner, footwear, snack, and lip balm design. Representative clients include Celgene, Daikin, Goodyear, McCain Foods, Procter & Gamble, and SharkNinja.

Before law school John obtained a Ph.D. in biophysics at the University of Michigan focusing on structural biology and X-ray protein crystallography. He solved several novel crystal structures of enzymes involved in methionine biosynthesis and homocysteine metabolism.

Experience

  • Goodyear defeats trade secrets case involving self-inflating tire technologyJones Day successfully represented Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company ("Goodyear") and its employees accused by a Czech Republic citizen and his companies of misappropriating trade secrets relating to self-inflating tire technology and incorporating the technology into several U.S. patents.
  • Daikin wins IPRs and successfully resolves patent dispute involving fluoropolymer products on eve of trialJones Day represented Daikin Industries, Ltd. and Daikin America, Inc. in a patent infringement suit brought by Chemours Company FC, LLC in Delaware federal court.
  • Cohesity disposes of six-patent litigation brought by adverse competitor CommvaultJones Day successfully represented Cohesity Inc. ("Cohesity") and obtained dismissal in a six-patent, competitor suit filed by Commvault Systems in April 21, 2020.
  • Owens Corning successfully defends ITC action involving roofing underlayment productsJones Day represented Owens Corning, Owens Corning Roofing & Asphalt, LLC, and InterWrap Corp. ("Owens Corning") in multi-venue litigation relating to synthetic roof underlayment patents asserted by Kirsch Research & Development, LLC ("Kirsch").
  • Sunrise Medical defends against patent infringement claims involving power wheelchair suspension technologyJones Day is representing Sunrise Medical (US) LLC in a patent infringement suit brought by Invacare Corporation in the U.S. District Court in Delaware.
  • SharkNinja cleans up in one of the largest U.S. design patent cases in U.S. historyAfter Jones Day client SharkNinja Operating LLC successfully defended against vacuum and appliance manufacturer Dyson's claim for infringement on three asserted design patents, Dyson voluntarily dismissed its appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on July 30, 2018, bringing to close a case that began more than four years ago.
  • McCain successfully defends patented French fry processing technology against IPR petition brought by competitor J.R. SimplotJones Day successfully represented McCain Foods Limited in defending an inter partes review (IPR) petition filed by competitor J.R. Simplot Company against U.S. Patent No. 6,821,540, which relates to French fry processing technology.
  • McCain battles Simplot in IP litigation over utility patents, design patents, and trade dress for frozen potato productsIn this competitor case, Jones Day is enforcing McCain Foods Limited's patent rights relating to McCain's French fry processing technology and potato product designs against Simplot, one of McCain's chief rivals.
  • Celgene wins in Federal Circuit appeal affirming invalidity of patent asserted against Thalomid® and Revlimid® brand cancer drugsJones Day successfully defended Celgene Corporation in a patent infringement case brought in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware by Andrulis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, which alleged that Celgene's THALOMID® and REVLIMID® brand cancer drugs infringed U.S. Patent No. 6,140,346 ("'346 patent").
  • eos Products and Kind Group get private label knockoff producer to surrender following pretrial rulings on trade dress and design patent issuesOn the eve of a two-week jury trial, the seller of the popular egg-shaped eos™ lip balm represented by Jones Day, eos Products LLC and its parent Kind Group LLC, obtained a settlement in which a private label manufacturer has agreed to stop offering knockoff egg-shaped lip balm.
  • Celgene wins in district court case, invalidating patent asserted against its Thalomid® and Revlimid® brand cancer drugsJones Day successfully defended Celgene Corporation in a patent infringement case brought in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware by Andrulis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, which alleged that Celgene's THALOMID® and REVLIMID® brand cancer drugs infringed U.S. Patent No. 6,140,346 ("'346 patent").
  • Sprint Nextel defends against claims of patent infringement for location based and E911 servicesJones Day represented codefendant Sprint Nextel against EMSAT in a patent infringement lawsuit concerning location based services and E911 service.
  • Procter & Gamble settles patent infringement and antitrust claims related to teeth whitening stripsJones Day represented Procter & Gamble in patent infringement litigation against CAO Group for infringement of certain patents relating to teeth whitening strips.
  • Procter & Gamble wins summary judgment of infringement and no invalidity in Tooth Whitening Strip patent disputeJones Day represented The Procter & Gamble Company in patent infringement litigation asserting three of P&G's patents relating to tooth whitening products and methods.
  • Blackmagic defends against patent infringement suitJones Day has been retained by Blackmagic Design Pty Ltd. to defend the company in a six-patent infringement suit initiated by Technology Licensing Corporation ("TLC").
  • SanDisk revives flash memory patent infringement claims against Kingston in Federal CircuitJones Day represented SanDisk Corporation ("SanDisk") in a successful appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit involving patent infringement.
  • Intersil resolves Section 337 action involving integrated circuit technologyJones Day defended Intersil Corporation and related affiliates Techwell, Inc. and Zilker Labs in a Section 337 action before the ITC relating to six patents for integrated circuit technology.
  • GE resolves dispute with Fawoo over its patents on LED modular lamp and power pack technologyJones Day represented General Electric Company subsidiary Lumination in a patent infringement action against a competitor, Fawoo Tech North America.
  • SanDisk asserts patent over flash memory systems before the ITCJones Day represented SanDisk Corporation as a complainant in an ITC action regarding flash memory systems.
  • Procter & Gamble settles patent infringement dispute with SC Johnson over fabric refresher productJones Day represented The Procter & Gamble Company in a case enforcing P&G's patents related to its Febreze fabric refresher against SC Johnson & Son Inc. for its Glade fabric refresher product.
  • Additional Speaking Engagements

    • May 30, 2012
      Where the Lanham Act and the Patent Act Collide: Trade Dress and Design Patents