Nikia Gray serves as the managing partner of the firm's Washington, D.C. office and is a partner in the Intellectual Property Group, devoting most of her practice to district court litigation, particularly high-stakes competitor litigation, in the areas of patent, trademark, copyright, and unfair competition. She also has extensive insight with administrative proceedings before the United States Patent and Trademark Office, including Inter Partes Review and Post-Grant Review.

As a trusted advisor, Nikia provides strategic counseling to clients in the acquisition, protection, and monetization of their patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. She also counsels clients on strategies to avoid disputes, including performing due diligence and policy review.

Nikia's legal skills are complemented by practical experience gained as a physicist. Before becoming a lawyer, she worked for several years in the private sector developing optical software solutions for the illumination industries. Nikia also actively participates in firm administration, including serving as the Washington D.C. Chair of Quarles & Brady's Diversity & Inclusion Committee, the Washington D.C. Chair of Quarles & Brady's Women's Forum, and a member of the IP Litigation Client Development Committee.

Nikia's recent experience includes the following:

• Won a jury trial verdict for $5.4M in a direct competitor litigation.


• Obtained a highly favorable settlement in a complex copyright and trademark dispute, involving issues of US and Mexican intellectual property law.


• Obtained a favorable claim construction ruling in a chemical patent infringement case, ultimately supporting a successful motion for summary judgment.


• Successfully represented both petitioners and patent owners in inter partes review proceedings before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.


• Negotiated favorable consent agreements in cancellation proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.


• Developed successful patent portfolio monetization strategies for practicing entities and research institutions.


• Litigated numerous patent, copyright, and trademark disputes, on behalf of both plaintiffs and accused infringers. Patent cases involved technology ranging from mechanical devices and business methods to semiconductor fabrication equipment and fat and oil chemistry.


• Drafted and prosecuted patent applications related to fiber optics, surgical devices, fluid valves, mission-critical systems, microphones, data storage devices, CO2 cartridges, eCommerce, data mining, encryption, and social networking.


• Drafted and prosecuted domestic and foreign trademark applications.

Representative Cases

• Ultratec, Inc. and CapTel, Inc. v. Sorenson Communications, Inc. and CaptionCall, LLC (WDWis.) (patent dispute between direct competitors).


• Water Tec of Tucson, Inc., et al. v. Water Tec International, Inc. et al. (D. Ariz.) (consolidated trademark and copyright infringement dispute).


• Rewards Network Inc. v. Zavee, LLC (S.D. Fla.) (patent dispute involving the implementation of rewards programs).


• Surefire, LLC v. Cabela's Inc. (C.D. Cal.) (patent dispute related to illumination technology that included additional claims of trade dress infringement).


• International Flora Technologies, Inc. v. Desert Whale Jojoba Company, Inc., et al. (D. Ariz.) (patent dispute involving chemically processed jojoba oil products).


• Arizona Institute of Urology, PLLC v. Arizona Urology Institute, P.C. (D. Ariz.) (trademark infringement dispute).


• Prugen IP Holdings, Inc. v. Sawgrass Services, LLC (Trademark Trial and Appeals Board) (trademark cancellation matter).


• Nova Financial & Investment Corp. v. Nova Capital Management Ltd. (Trademark Trial and Appeals Board) (trademark cancellation matter).