Michael John Thomas

Michael J. Thomas is one of a few registered patent attorneys based in Sacramento with a law practice focused on intellectual property litigation, including prosecuting and defending claims involving patents, copyrights, trademarks and trade secrets. Mike has handled cases in federal and state courts from coast to coast, and has served as lead counsel in a wide variety of technology centric cases from cutting-edge computer software to food processing methods and equipment. Mike first developed an interest in intellectual property law over 25 years ago while working as a practicing design engineer in Sunnyvale, California, the heart of Silicon Valley. With his science and engineering background, Mike is unique in his ability to understand and convey technical details to clients in a concise and comprehensive manner. Mike also manages Downey Brand’s domestic and international trademark practice – appearing regularly before the United States Patent and Trademark Office registering, managing and protecting many hundreds of trademarks for a variety of clients from multi-billion-dollar corporations to closely-held family businesses. Mike has scored a number of significant legal victories. Just this year, Mike was a key member of Downey Brand's team representing Sierra Pacific Industries in its defense of a claim asserted by the California Attorney General. Mike was deeply involved in all aspects of the case including a multi-day pre-trial argument that led to dismissal of all claims, and an award of $32.4 million to defendants. The year before, in federal court in Sacramento, Mike represented an industry leading software provider in a case involving a competitor’s infringement of computer software copyrights and trade secret misappropriation. Mike obtained an order imposing extraordinary sanctions against the competing software company, which ultimately yielded a seven figure recovery for his client. His practice is not limited to intellectual property litigation; he also enjoys representing clients in complex litigation and commercial disputes ranging from wildland fire origin and cause litigation to product defect claims. Mike has earned the reputation as a formidable litigator who is focused on protecting his client’s interests.