William D. Patterson

Biography

Business owners and creators rely on Bill to protect their life’s work. Bill works with his clients to get to know their company and to develop a strategy that protects their ideas. His experience in advocating for his clients ranges from handling complex litigation matters including trademark, trade secrets and patent infringement matters, to leading the sale of Wordle to the New York Times.

Bill chairs the Commercial Litigation practice group, and has a national litigation practice, handling matters from New York to California and Florida to Alaska. Bill also regularly speaks to both business leaders and law students about strategies for protecting intellectual property.

His recent litigation experience includes: 

  • Representing an art collective in a trademark dispute before the Second Circuit Court of Appeals;
  • Representing a multi-national corporation in deceptive trade practices litigation in California;
  • Representing shareholders in a dispute with the managing member;
  • Trade secrets litigation on behalf of business owners against former employees; and
  • Numerous breach of contract including breach of licensing agreements for a variety of entities.

Prior to joining Swanson, Martin & Bell, Bill was general counsel for Business Logic where he led a four-and-a half-year fight against Morningstar, resulting in a $61 million settlement for his client. He also served as general counsel for the fintech company NextCapital, where he advised the founders on corporate formation, software licensing, intellectual property protection and other corporate issues.

Bill has spent the past 10 years as a volunteer and now a member of the board of directors of Chicago Lights, a Chicago not-for-profit that helps those experiencing homelessness. Bill also enjoys cooking for and spending time with his wife and three children.

Practices

Commercial Litigation and Business Disputes
Intellectual Property Litigation and Transactional Services
Class Action Defense
Entertainment and Media Law
Appellate Practice

Memberships & Affiliations

  • International Trademark Association (INTA)
  • American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA)

Presentations

  • "NFTs & The Metaverse: What Laws Apply?", Panelist, University of Illinois Chicago Law's 66th Annual Intellectual Property Law Conference, October 2022

Awards

  • Selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America®
    • Commercial Litigation, 2024

Publications

News

February 19, 2024
Patterson Named Lawyers Lend-A-Hand to Youth My Hero Award Recipient
Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP Partner William D. Patterson has been named the recipient of the My Hero Award by the Lawyers Lend-A-Hand to Youth (LLAH) organization.

Chicago, February 08, 2024
Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP Sponsors the 2024 Chicago Lights' Gala of Hope
Partner William D. Patterson and Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP are proud sponsors of the Chicago Lights' Gala of Hope on March 1 at the Old Post Office in Chicago.

October 31, 2023
Patterson to Speak at UIC Law's 67th Annual Intellectual Property Law Conference
Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP Partner William D. Patterson will present at the University of Illinois Chicago College of Law's 67th Annual Intellectual Property, Information & Privacy Law Conference on November 10.

Chicago, Lisle, Libertyville, St. Louis, Madison County, August 17, 2023
Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP Attorneys Named to 2024 Best Lawyers, Ones to Watch Lists
Fifty-five Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP attorneys were named to the 2024 Best Lawyers in America® and Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America™ lists.

May 11, 2023
Fardy and Patterson to Attend the International Trademark Association's 2023 Annual Meeting
Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP attorneys P. Stephen Fardy and William D. Patterson will attend the International Trademark Association's (INTA) 2023 Annual Meeting on May 16-20 in Singapore.

April 03, 2023
Patterson and O'Toole Peterson Author ABA Landslide Intellectual Property Magazine Article
Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP attorneys William D. Patterson and Nicole O'Toole Peterson authored the article "Pitfalls in Digitizing Physical Assets and Three Best Practices” for Landslide Magazine, an intellectual property law publication of the American Bar Association.

February 23, 2023
Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP Files Amicus Brief on Behalf of MSCHF in Jack Daniels v. VIP Products
Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP attorneys Bill Patterson and Nicole O’Toole Peterson filed an amicus brief on behalf of MSCHF, a Brooklyn-based art collective in favor of artist’s rights to choose their medium of expression.

February 20, 2023
Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP Sponsors the 2023 Chicago Lights' Gala of Hope
Partner William D. Patterson and Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP are proud sponsors of the Chicago Lights' Gala of Hope on March 3.

October 26, 2022
Bill Patterson to Present at UIC Law's 66th Annual Intellectual Property Law Conference
Partner Bill Patterson will present at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) Law's 66th Annual Intellectual Property Law Conference on November 11.

Chicago, 2/17/2022
Patterson Leads Sale of Wordle to New York Times
Patterson Leads Sale of Wordle to New York Times

Chicago, Lisle, Libertyville, Madison County, January 11, 2021
Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP Attorneys Named Leading Lawyers, Emerging Lawyers for 2021
Those designated Leading Lawyers were recommended by their peers to be among the top lawyers in Illinois.

Chicago, December 3, 2020
Patterson Shares How Santa Monetizes His Intellectual Property
Hosted by the Center for Creative Entrepreneurship, the webinar offered a timely case study for entrepreneurs on how to mind their business and protect their interests.

Chicago, March 17, 2020
Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP Data Protection Newsletter - Work From Home
The latest newsletter focuses on work from home policies.

Chicago, March 10, 2020
Patterson Speaks at Litigation Funding Forum
Patterson's presentation is on "Pitching the Case – A Guide to Finding Litigation Funding."

Chicago, Lisle, Libertyville, Madison County, February 3, 2020
Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP Attorneys Named Leading Lawyers, Emerging Lawyers for 2020
Those designated Leading Lawyers were recommended by their peers to be among the top lawyers in Illinois.

Chicago, August 28, 2019
Patterson Speaks on Litigation Finance
Patterson and fellow panelists will offer "A Case Study: How Litigation Funding Saved A Business."

Chicago, April 3, 2019
Patterson Speaks on Data Privacy at DePaul Business and Commercial Law Journal Symposium
This year's symposium will focus on "Innovation, Technology, and Developments in the Legal Landscape."

Chicago, January 16, 2019
Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP Attorneys Named Leading Lawyers, Emerging Lawyers for 2019
Those designated Leading Lawyers were recommend by their peers to be among the top lawyers in Illinois.

Chicago, October 22, 2018
Patterson Addresses Legal Realities in a Virtual World at 2112 Tech Summit
Patterson led "a discussion of known-knowns and known-unknowns in immersive tech."

Chicago, June 21, 2016
IP Newsletter: How the Defense of Trade Secrets Act Impacts Your Business
The Intellectual Property Litigation and Transactional Services Practice Group has released its June newsletter.

March 28, 2016
Patterson Speaks at SuperConference on Litigation Finance
Patterson, who was formerly General Counsel at Business Logic, will speak on litigation finance.

January 21, 2016
Patterson Authors "Above the Law" Article on Litigation Finance
Patterson discusses three ways litigation finance changes an attorney's job, inside and out.

January 18, 2016
Becker, Patterson Lead Tech Talk on New Media
The talk is hosted at 2112, Chicago's first incubator focused on the development of entrepreneurs in music, film/video, and creative technology.

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