Steven M. Zager was named one of the top 10 trial lawyers in the country in 2007 by The National Law Journal ("Winning: Successful Trial Strategies From Some of the Nation’s Top Litigators,” June 18, 2007). Mr. Zager serves as the global head of the firm’s intellectual property practice and is a member of the firm's Management Committee.

In 2002 Mr. Zager was named the top civil defense lawyer in Texas by Texas Lawyer. He was also recognized by The American Lawyer as one of the top 45 lawyers in America under age 45 and was listed in the 2008 edition of The Best Lawyers in America. He is listed in the 2008 edition of Chambers USA for litigation which describes him as “an impressive trial lawyer” and recognizes him for “his ability to command a courtroom.”

Mr. Zager has been recognized in a peer-review survey as a Texas “Super Lawyer” each year since 2003. He has also been recognized as one of Houston’s top trial lawyers by HTexas Magazine and he was elected by his peers to the American Board of Trial Advocates. Mr. Zager has received the Professionalism Award from the Texas Center for Legal Ethics and the Frank Scurlock Award for Outstanding Pro Bono Service from the State Bar of Texas.

Mr. Zager represents plaintiffs and defendants in civil cases. During the course of his career, he has represented clients in civil cases across the country, including—

• one of the world’s largest chemical companies in the prosecution of a trade secret case in Houston that ended in a verdict that was identified by The National Law Journal as one of the 10 largest verdicts in America in 2006
• a group of major telecommunications companies in patent litigation in the Eastern District of Texas
• a major international automaker in patent litigation in the Eastern District of Texas
• a major international computer chip maker in patent litigation in the Eastern District of Texas
• a leading medical products manufacturer in patent litigation in the Western District of Tennessee, the Northern District of California and the Western District of Texas
• a leading chemical company in litigation relating to its acquisition
• a leasing company in national class action litigation and in responding to a Texas Attorney General's investigative demand
• one of the world’s largest telecommunications companies in the defense of national mass tort and consumer class action litigation in Baltimore, Chicago, Philadelphia and the District of Columbia
• one of the nation’s largest banks in the defense of a $400 million case in Houston involving international monetary transactions that ended in a take-nothing jury verdict
• an international medical products manufacturer in its prosecution and defense of patent litigation in San Francisco and Memphis
• one of the nation’s largest hospital companies in the defense of a $150 million antitrust case in Houston
• a well-known computer manufacturer in the defense of consumer class action, patent and trademark litigation in Boston and Beaumont
• the board of directors of a national public broadcasting company in a Sarbanes-Oxley investigation
• a consumer product company in its defense of patent infringement litigation in Houston
• one of the largest diversified financial services companies in a $100 million claim in connection with the construction of a luxury resort in Dallas
• a bank holding company in litigation arising out of the largest bank failure in American history in Houston
• a well-known professional athlete in contract litigation in Dallas
• a well-known recording artist in contract litigation in Houston
• a major national telecommunications company in the defense of a national consumer class action in Houston
• a national home improvement products retailer in the defense of consumer class action and patent litigation in Houston and Tyler
• the appeal of a consumer class action under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act to the Texas Supreme Court for a national wireless carrier.

Before joining Akin Gump, Mr. Zager served as the litigation practice chair and office managing partner for another national law firm.

Mr. Zager received his B.A. in 1979 and his J.D. in 1983 from Vanderbilt University. He is admitted to practice in Texas, New York and the District of Columbia and before the U.S. Supreme Court; the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals; the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 5th, 6th, 9th and 11th Circuits; and the U.S. District Courts for the Northern, Southern, Eastern and Western Districts of Texas, the District of Arizona, and the District of Columbia.

Mr. Zager has served as an officer or director of the State Bar of Texas, the Houston Bar Association, the Austin Bar Association, the Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program and Legal Services of Central Texas. He is a member of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA), the Intellectual Property Section of the American Bar Association and the Intellectual Property Owners Association. He has also served on the boards of Vanderbilt University School of Law, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center; the Alley Theatre; KLRU in Austin, Texas; the Houston Nature Center and Arboretum; and Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville, Tennessee.

Mr. Zager is a frequent author and lecturer.