Michael W. Meredith is an associate at K&L Gates' Seattle office, where he is a member of the firm's commercial disputes and intellectual property practice groups. Michael maintains a nation-wide practice with a focus on advising some of the country’s most innovative companies on how to best protect and enforce their valuable intellectual property, trade secrets, and non-competition agreements in litigation and pre-litigation disputes with their market competitors and employees.
His experience includes:
- Counseling insurance, financial services and real estate firms in disputes with their employees regarding the misappropriation of trade secrets and enforcement of non-competition agreements.
- Representation of software, outdoor recreation, and fashion brands in federal trademark infringement and unfair competition litigation against market competitors.
- Advising securities and identity-access management companies in breach of contract claims against their former customers and employees.
Michael brings a wealth of litigation experience to bear in the service of his clients. He has successfully represented individuals, as well Fortune 500 companies, and achieved a favorable resolution in a number of multi-million-dollar Lanham Act and Federal Defend Trade Secrets Act cases.
Michael also works closely with clients to evaluate, develop, and manage their intellectual property portfolios prior to litigation. He regularity represents clients before the United States Patent and Trademark Office and Trademark Trial and Appeal Board and assists in the development of contracts and internal protocols designed to properly maintain their valuable business assets and ensure compliance with national and international law regarding the protection of trade secrets and other intellectual property.
Michael's work in this area is well-recognized by his peers. He is consistently nominated as one of Washington's 'Rising Stars' by Super Lawyers and was appointed to serve on the Washington State Bar Association's (WSBA) Amicus Briefing Committee, which makes recommendations on behalf of the Bar to the Washington State Supreme Court and other governmental entities. As a member of K&L Gates’ artificial intelligence (AI) working group and WSBA Uniform Commercial Code Committee on Article 12 regarding Controllable Electronic Records, Michael also stays abreast of cutting-edge developments in generative AI, cryptocurrency, and block-chain technologies.
Michael is a graduate of the University of Washington School of Law where he graduated with honors and was inducted into the National Order of the Coif and National Order of Barristers.
Prior to joining the firm, Michael served as a federal judicial clerk for the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, and as a staff attorney at the Washington State Supreme Court.
- Named to the Washington Rising Stars list (2018-2023)
- “Developers Are Testing Defenses In Generative AI Litigation,” Law360, 15 September 2023
- Tuning the Second Amendment, or Constitutional Interpretation with a Hammer: Nietzsche and the Right to Bear Arms, 9 HLRe: Off Rec. 20, 34 (2018).
- Federalism & the Friendly Skies: Can States Regulate the Airline Industry, NWLawyer (Oct. 2016).
- Fracking in the Pacific Northwest, NWLawyer (Jun. 2016).
- Contract Law and the Free Kesha Movement, NWSidebar (Feb. 24, 2016).
- Sorry, Adele – Trump Doesn’t Need Your Permission to Play Your Songs, NWSidebar (Feb. 9, 2016).
- The Costs of Failed Private Regulation; Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems (MERS) as Case Study, Law and Society Conference, Seattle, Washington (2015).
- Rethinking Virtual Currency Regulation in the Bitcoin Age, 90 Wash. L. Rev. 271 (2015).
- Four Legs to Stand on: The Unexplored Potential of Civil War Era “Qui Tam’ Suits to Advance Animal Rights in the Federal Judiciary, 4 Seattle J. Envtl. L. 187 (2014).
- Safaricom and M-Pesa in Kenya: Financial Inclusion and Financial Integrity, 8 Wash. J.L. Tech. & Arts 375 (2013).
- Why Do We Raise Our Right Hands When Testifying Before the Court, NWSidebar (Oct. 21, 2013).
- Malaysia’s World Trade Organization Challenge to the European Union’s Renewable Energy Directive: An Economic Analysis, 21 Pac. Rim L. & Pol’y J. 399 (2012)
