The Simon Law Firm on Business Litigation, Patent Trademark Copyright Litigation, and Contingency Fees

By: Anthony G. Simon and Jer W. Nixon

When Tony Simon left a large national firm to join his brother John at the Simon Law Firm 20 years ago, it was one of the first firms in the country to handle Intellectual Property and commercial litigation on a contingent fee basis.

Since that time, the firm has recovered over $1 billion in cases for clients across the nation.

The firm represents a diverse client base that includes individuals, small businesses, and Fortune 500 companies. Most of the firm’s clients are referred by attorneys with clients who need a national litigation firm to handle single matters.

In significant litigation, hourly fees can endanger businesses’ cash flows. Simon Law has the resources to advance litigation expenses and only handles cases on contingency fees or other alternative fee arrangements.

This empowers clients to go up against the biggest companies in the biggest cases without worrying about legal bills each month. These cases, if taken hourly, can strain the attorney-client relationship. The Simon Law Firm handles these cases and works with the client’s regular attorney.

The firm has faced off against the world’s largest companies like Google, Apple, Amazon, and more, and has secured one of the highest ongoing royalty patent rates ever.

“Businesses run on budgets,” Simon said. By using contingent or flat fees, he can be upfront about the exact cost and come up with a payment plan that makes sense for the client’s business.

Because litigation is so unpredictable, businesses can’t accurately plan their budgets when paying by the hour.

“It’s not just about winning the case, it’s about doing the right thing for your client’s business at every stage of the litigation,” Simon said. “My goal, in all commercial litigation matters, is to get the best result for my client’s business.”

Tony’s legal career is among the most prolific of any business litigation attorney. He has served as lead trial counsel in hundreds of patent, antitrust, copyright, trademark, and intellectual property cases nationwide. He has tried cases to verdict in state and federal courts and handles appeals in those cases.

In addition to his lead counsel duties, he provides his specialized knowledge to firms across the nation as co‐counsel so attorneys can maintain their client relationships.

Simon has been honored by the legal community for decades running by being selected by his peers as the Lawyer of the Year in Patent, Antitrust, or Intellectual Property Litigation by U.S. News Best Lawyers in America® 10 times.

Simon said the most important aspect of business litigation is not to disrupt the business. The benefit of including attorneys in the business litigation stage is that they can help business owners make informed decisions as the case progresses.

By knowing exactly what they will pay in legal fees, clients can make better decisions including when to settle and when to fight.

“Don’t just hire somebody who’s experienced in business disputes, hire someone who’s experienced in trying business disputes and has actually tried cases,” Simon said.

When it comes to intellectual property, antitrust, and commercial litigation, experience is everything.

“I like to describe commercial litigation as any litigation that doesn’t involve personal injury,” he said. “That includes intellectual property, like patents, trademarks, copyrights, as well as contract disputes, unfair competition and antitrust claims.”