Micah Jacobs: Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud & Romo

Overview

Micah Jacobs is a trial lawyer who specializes in complex commercial, business, and intellectual property litigation, including breach of contract disputes, partnership disputes, patent infringement and trade secrets, unfair competition, employment, and business tort cases. Mr. Jacobs resolves complicated disputes for leading internet and technology companies throughout Silicon Valley, as well as many other industries. He has almost 30 years of experience litigating, resolving, and trying cases in state and federal courts throughout the United States, winning many unanimous jury verdicts and high-profile settlements. He has also litigated cross-border, international commercial disputes.

Because of his ability to handle a company’s most critical cases through trial while maintaining a commitment to creative and cost-effective settlement and litigation strategies, Mr. Jacobs is routinely sought out by small, medium, and large businesses, as well as entrepreneurs, high net worth individuals, artists, inventors, and start-ups, to protect their interests and resolve their important legal problems.

Mr. Jacobs has secured many unanimous jury verdicts for both plaintiffs and defendants, as well as large settlements in prominent cases. In 2018, he won a four-week jury trial and million-dollar judgment representing one of the world’s most popular apps against an industry leading mobile gaming company, after proving that it made fraudulent representations and breached a complex revenue sharing agreement. In 2019, Mr. Jacobs won a $4 million dollar jury verdict in a case for breach of a business acquisition agreement. Mr. Jacobs also secured a $23 million settlement for his clients who sold their business for stock in a widely publicized securities fraud case.

While his passion is to try cases, Mr. Jacobs believes most disputes can and should be resolved before trial. As such, Mr. Jacobs brings his common sense, sophisticated negotiation, and creative problem-solving skills to every case. Through aggressive yet focused and methodical preparation for trial, he is able to resolve even the most difficult disputes in the most cost-effective manner possible.

Mr. Jacobs has been recognized repeatedly by his peers and Law and Politics as a Northern California Super Lawyer, including in 2010 through 2023. In 2009, the Daily Journal named Mr. Jacobs among the top 75 intellectual property litigators in California.

Before launching his own litigation firm in 2011, Mr. Jacobs spent 10 years litigating complex disputes at some of California’s elite AmLaw 100 law firms in Silicon Valley. He also co-founded a successful boutique business, technology, and entertainment law firm in San Francisco, before bringing his entrepreneurial skills to AALRR.

Before practicing law, Mr. Jacobs was a ski instructor at Squaw Valley, USA, currently known as Palisades Tahoe, and a competitive triathlete, completing the Ironman Triathlon in 1994. He now lives in Marin County and enjoys spending time with his wife and adult children, mountain biking, and racing recreationally in triathlons.

Honors & Recognitions

Top 75 Intellectual Property Litigator, Daily Journal, 2009
Northern California Super Lawyer, 2010 - 2023

Representative Matters

Internet, Technology and Intellectual Property Disputes

Mr. Jacobs represented a leading Central Valley developer and manufacturer of premium commercial farming products in a patent infringement case against one of the largest distributors of farming products in the country. Despite being outspent by a factor of 10:1 against a well-known global litigation firm, Mr. Jacobs obtained a highly favorable settlement for his client.
Mr. Jacobs was part of a team of attorneys who successfully defended Amgen, Inc. in a multi-million-dollar patent infringement case brought by rival Genentech, Inc.
In a groundbreaking lawsuit against Microsoft, Mr. Jacobs helped Blue Mountain Arts, one of world’s largest electronic greeting card sites, win one of the few restraining orders on record against Microsoft. In response to novel claims for unfair competition and unlawful interference, the Court issued a restraining order that prevented Microsoft from releasing a new version of its Internet Explorer browser that interfered with Blue Mountain’s electronic greeting card business.
In another landmark Internet case, Mr. Jacobs was co-counsel for Panavision in one of the first published decisions to apply the Federal Trademark Dilution Act to prevent “cybersquatting.” In Panavision v. Toeppen, 141 F.3d 1316 (9th Cir. 1998), the Ninth Circuit held that the Trademark Dilution Act prohibited defendant from using Panavision’s famous mark as an Internet domain name.
In 2018, Mr. Jacobs won a million-dollar jury verdict against one of the world’s leading mobile gaming companies, for breach of a revenue share agreement and fraud.
Mr. Jacobs was lead counsel for an internationally known biopharmaceutical researcher who invented a novel therapeutic compound and then assigned his rights in that compound to a global pharmaceutical company headquartered in India to develop and market the drug. The cross-border case was subject to arbitration before the London Court of International Arbitration, and presented complex issues of international arbitration, choice of law and conflicts of laws analysis applying the laws of the U.S., U.K, and India. Mr. Jacobs secured a seven-figure settlement and the return of his client’s intellectual property rights.

Entertainment, Commercial and Contract Disputes
In a 3-week jury trial in the Los Angeles Superior Court, Mr. Jacobs won a unanimous jury verdict on behalf of a television and movie actor who sued his entertainment business manager for breach of contract and negligent financial advice.
On behalf of the former business partner of actor/director Michael Douglas, Mr. Jacobs successfully resolved a breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and willful interference with prospective economic advantage case, based on claims that Mr. Douglas improperly divested him of his ownership rights in a film and entertainment company they co-owned.
Mr. Jacobs won a 4-week jury trial defending a construction company against claims for breach of contract, construction defect, fraud and elder abuse, winning unanimous defense verdicts. The jury also returned verdicts in favor of Mr. Jacob’s client's counterclaims. The judgments were affirmed on appeal.
Mr. Jacobs has litigated numerous post-merger or post-acquisition disputes representing both buyers and sellers in cases alleging breach of contract, breach of representations and warranties, fraud and related claims. For example, in 2019, Micah won a $4 million jury verdict in a case alleging breach of an asset purchase agreement.
Mr. Jacobs successfully defended a director of a large private technology company against claims by the company’s largest investor that the director breached his fiduciary obligations to the company’s shareholders.
Mr. Jacobs has represented numerous business owners, directors, investors and partners in various dissolution or management disputes and prosecuted multiple director and/or shareholder document inspection demands.
As co-counsel, Mr. Jacobs helped Los Angeles Lakers player and coach Brian Shaw prevail at trial against claims for breach of contract in a partnership investment dispute, even where other defendants were found liable.

Securities Matters

In a widely publicized securities fraud and breach of contract case, Mr. Jacobs represented the selling shareholders of a private technology company against Homestore.com, Inc. At the time, Homestore.com, Inc. was the world’s leading online real estate business. It was discovered that Homestore.com, Inc. engaged in accounting fraud that artificially inflated the value of the stock they paid to acquire Mr. Jacobs’ client’s company. Mr. Jacobs secured in a $23 million settlement.
Defended the Vice President of Finance of a publicly held software company in connection with an SEC investigation looking into potential revenue recognition irregularities at the company.
Defended a securities brokerage firm against claims brought by one the country’s largest clearing firms that one of its agents had engaged in fraudulent trades.
Recovered $4 million for a group of senior corporate managers of an acquired publicly traded company after it was discovered that due to accounting fraud and artificial valuation of stock, their stock options were severely deflated.
Represented private venture fund in securities fraud claims against a public web-based consumer auction site and recovered its investment funds.