Practice concentrates on patent infringement and trade secret litigation and appeals to the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals.
Represents clients in a broad range of sectors, with a particular focus on biotechnology, biologics, and medical devices.
Holds a Ph.D. in immunology.

Dr. Rachel Elsby represents clients in intellectual property disputes with a particular focus on district court litigation and Federal Circuit appeals. She also works on matters before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) and the International Trade Commission (ITC).

Rachel represents clients in all phases of litigation from pre-suit investigations to trial and appeal. She helps formulate case strategy, prepares briefs, handles oral arguments and Markman proceedings, manages trial issues for appeal and examines witnesses at trial. She has also been involved with dozens of appeals in both counsel and consulting roles, and has argued multiple cases in front of the Federal Circuit. Rachel is also called upon to draft amicus briefs at the Federal Circuit and Supreme Court on patent issues.

Rachel previously served as a law clerk to the Honorable Pauline Newman at the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, the appellate court hearing all patent appeals coming out of district courts, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) and ITC. Before attending law school, Rachel received a Ph.D. in immunology. Her research focused on understanding the mechanisms of the immune response to malignant disease and virus infection, and developing oncolytic viruses to treat cancer.

Representative Work

Represented Bristol-Myers Squibb, Ono Pharmaceutical Co. and Japanese immunologist Dr. Tasuko Honjo in patent litigation involving revolutionary immuno-oncology treatment methods. The team's work contributed to a worldwide settlement that included an initial payment by defendant Merck & Co., Inc. of $625 million and payment of ongoing royalties through 2026.
Represents Boston Scientific in a series of multi-front patent and trade secret litigations against Nevro Corp. relating to spinal cord stimulation technology in the district of Delaware. The cases involve affirmative patent and trade secret claims asserted by Boston Scientific, counterclaims for patent infringement asserted by Nevro and parallel petitions for inter partes review before the PTAB. The first jury trial in the series of matters occurred in October 2021 where the jury found that Nevro directly infringed one Boston Scientific patent and induced its manufacturer to infringe a second patent directed to spinal cord stimulation technology and awarded $20 million to Boston Scientific.
Represented plaintiff 3M Company in a patent infringement dispute against competitor Kerr Corporation involving 3M’s innovative dental composite materials. After successive victories for 3M in connection with Markman proceedings and Daubert motions, the case settled in December 2019.
Represented 3M Company as appellees in an appeal of a decision from the Western District of Washington, in which our trial team obtained dismissal of a complaint for infringement based on TC Heartland. The Federal Circuit affirmed the dismissal.
Represented pharmaceutical companies in district court litigation and on appeal in an inventorship action related to patents involving methods of treatment for cancer with biologics.

Filed amicus brief at the Federal Circuit on behalf of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization regarding the appropriate legal standard for obviousness.
Represented a multinational food packaging company in defense of its patent through summary judgment and appeal, securing successful judgments of infringement and no invalidity.
Representing Sorenson Communications and CaptionCall, LLC against primary competitor Ultratec/CapTel, Inc. in a series of district court, federal circuit and PTAB matters over Ultratec’s patents concerning telecommunications for the deaf and hard-of-hearing. The Akin Gump team took over this series of matters during the post-trial and appellate phases following two district court jury trials. Since then, in a series of nine IPRs, the PTAB found all of Ultratec’s asserted claims in the first trial unpatentable. The Akin Gump team also successfully challenged and rendered unpatentable all claims of three additional Ultratec patents asserted in subsequently-filed but stayed district court litigations.
Represented a chemical manufacturer in the correction of inventorship action related to compounds used to improve the barrier properties of plastic bottles, which resulted in favorable outcome at trial.
Represented a patent owner in an infringement suit involving patents to progressive lens technology in litigation that resulted in a favorable jury verdict at trial.
Represented veterans and government employees in multiple pro bono appeals to the Federal Circuit.

Education
J.D., George Mason University School of Law, 2010
Ph.D., University of Miami, 2007
B.S., University of Miami, 2002

Clerkships
U.S.C.A., Federal Circuit

Bar Admissions
District of Columbia
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Virginia

Recognitions

The Legal 500 US, Patents: Litigation (Full Coverage), 2021 and 2023.
Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers Rising Star, 2020.
2019 Stark Ritchie Counsel Award for Pro Bono Service
Recipient, Federal Circuit Bar Association Special Achievement Award, 2018.

Speeches and Publications

Panelist, “Pre-Suit Exchanges and the BPCIA Tango: Production, Timing, and the Notice of Commercial Marketing,” ACI Summit on Biosimilars & Innovator Biologics, September 23, 2020.
Panelist, “Gauging the Impact of COVID-19 Across the Global IP Market: Lessons Learned from the Novel Coronavirus” ACI Webinar, June 24, 2020.
Moderator, “Current Developments in the Doctrine of Equivalents,” Giles Rich Inn of Court, October 22, 2019.
Moderator, “Federal Circuit Appeals from Biotech IPRs,” PTAB Bar Association, October 22, 2019.
Moderator, “In-House Counsel Practice,” Giles S. Rich Inn of Court, October 16, 2018.
Moderator, “Oil States and SAS: A Preview to Oral Argument and Beyond,” FCBA, Webinar, November 9, 2017.
Panelist, “112(b) - Practitioners' Perspective,” USPTO Biotechnology, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Partnership (BCP) Meeting, November 6, 2017.
Panelist, “Federal Circuit Review of PTAB Proceedings: What We Know and Still Don’t Know,” 27^thAll Ohio Annual Institute on Intellectual Property, September 13 and 14, 2017.
Panelist, “Issues in Appeals from the PTAB,” PTAB Bar Association, Webinar, August 1, 2017.
Panelist, “The Impact of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board,” The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law, Washington, D.C., February 28, 2017.
Panelist, “Annual Survey of American Law,” New York University, New York, February 21, 2017.
Panelist, “Two Years of Federal Circuit Review of PTAB Proceedings: What We Know and Still Don't Know,” Washington, D.C., February 7, 2017.
“Tips for Appellate Writing,” Panelist, DC Bar Young Lawyers Drafting Series, Washington, D.C., January 21, 2015.