Diane C. Hutnyan

 

Los Angeles Office
Tel: 213-443-3000
Fax: 213-443-3100
dianehutnyan@quinnemanuel.com

Practice Areas
Antitrust and Trade Regulation
Class Action Litigation
Intellectual Property Litigation
Plaintiffs' Litigation
Transnational Litigation

Education

 

Stanford University (J.D., M.B.A., 1997)

Fellow, Stanford Center on Conflict and Negotiation, 1997

President, JD/MBA Association, 1996-1997

 

The George Washington University (M.A., Russian and East European Studies, 1991)

 

Plekhanov Institute of Economics, Moscow, USSR (Diploma, 1988)

 

Indiana University (B.A., Russian Languages and Literatures; Certificate, Russian and East European Institute, 1987)







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Biography


Diane Cafferata Hutnyan is a trial lawyer in the Los Angeles office of Quinn Emanuel whose practice focuses on intellectual property and other high-stakes complex business litigation in the federal and state courts.  In the last few years, Diane's teams have brought in hundreds of millions of dollars for QE clients.  Representative clients include Northrop Grumman, Mattel, Satyam Computer Services, Samsung, and Freedom Wireless.

Much of Diane's practice focuses on patent matters, which have involved a range of technologies, including nanotechnology, semiconductors, satellites, telecommunications, billing systems, fiber optics, and HCV genotyping methods.  She also has significant experience litigating copyright infringement, trade mark, trade dress, trade secret misappropriation, unfair competition and false advertising matters, as well as class actions, antitrust matters, RICO claims, real estate disputes, and other types of complex business litigation.

Diane has a national practice, and has litigated these high-profile cases, representing both plaintiffs and defendants, in a wide range of venues, including the Eastern District of Texas, the Eastern District of Virginia, the Western District of Wisconsin, the Northern and Central Districts of California, the District of Massachusetts, and Madison County, Illinois.  She also has expertise in managing large multi-defendant actions, in working up various types of forensic analyses for trial, and in presenting issues of international patent law.

Diane has been named a 2012 California "Super Lawyer" by Los Angeles Magazine.

 




Representative Clients


Mattel, Inc.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Micron Technology, Inc. and Micron Semiconductor Products, Inc.
Lockheed Martin Corporation
International Business Machines Corp.
Northrop Grumman Corporation
Space Systems/Loral
Satyam Computer Services, Ltd.
Abbott Laboratories
Freedom Wireless, Inc.




Notable Representations

 

In patent suit against telecommunications providers involving prepaid wireless technology, won judgment of $128 million, along with additional award of $35 million in interest and royalties and entry of permanent injunction.  Reported decisions include:  Freedom Wireless v. Boston Communications Group, Inc., 390 F. Supp. 2d 63 (D. Mass. 2005) (rejecting inequitable conduct defenses after entry of jury verdict and after bench trial); 369 F. Supp. 2d 159 (D. Mass. 2005) (ruling that abandoned patent application and evidence regarding alleged constructive reduction to practice was inadmissible); 369 F. Supp. 2d 155 (D. Mass. 2005) (excluding opinion testimony proffered by defendants); 220 F. Supp. 2d 16 (D. Mass. 2002) (denying defendants' summary judgment motion challenging ownership of patents-in-suit).  The verdict was the largest ever awarded in Massachusetts, and was the eighth biggest verdict awarded in the U.S. that year.

 

Led a patent enforcement action brought by Northrop Grumman against seven corporate defendants that resulted in licenses amounting to a total of 9 figures.  Reported decisions include:  The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University et al. v. Tyco International Ltd. et al., 253 F.R.D. 528 (C.D. Cal. 2008); 253 F.R.D. 524 (C. D. Cal. 2008).

 

Developed and executed successful post-trial and appellate strategies for large pharmaceutical company whose trial counsel had lost the underlying patent case.

 

Defended major Indian IT firm Satyam Computer Services, Ltd. in fraud and breach of contract suit seeking alleged damages based on claims of domestic and international infringement of telecommunications patents.


In class action capitol Madison County, Illinois, obtained decertification of a class, and shortly thereafter, dismissal of class action involving use of the term "limited edition" that was pending against Mattel.

 

Defeated, at trial, omitted inventorship claim in suit involving prepaid wireless telephone technology. 


Played integral role in obtaining jury verdict of willful infringement of three patents and one-third enhancement of damages, for a total award of $20.5 million, as well as permanent injunction, on behalf of patentee in patent infringement action involving surgical trocar seal technology. 


Represented two nanotechnology companies in a patent infringement and trade secret  misappropriation action.


Obtained summary judgment in defense of medical device manufacturer on trade secret  misappropriation, conversion, estoppel, breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty in trade secret misappropriation/patent joint inventorship action.


Obtained a constructive trust and a stipulated permanent injunction for plaintiff, a large Silicon Valley manufacturer, in lawsuit against departing manager for theft of trade secrets and breach of fiduciary duty.

 

Obtained dismissal with prejudice, at the pleading stage of lawsuit, of nine causes of action asserted against Fortune 50 technology company, including fraud, breach of contract, trade libel, breach of fiduciary duty, and negligence.

 

In matter originally claiming damages in millions for alleged software copyright infringement and breach of license agreement, negotiated settlement and release of all claims against defendants for total payment of three dollars.


Obtained and enforced $177,500 judgment after a bench trial in pro bono representation of a young mother whose landlord had locked her out of her home (increasing arbitration award by more than 800%).