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Steven Saunders, Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP Photo

Steven G. Saunders

Chair, Intellectual Property Department / Boston

Overview

Steven G. Saunders is a partner and chair of Nutter’s Intellectual Property Department. Clients of all sizes, from emerging companies to multinational corporations, rely on Steven’s counsel for managing all of their intellectual property needs, including IP portfolio development, strategy and evaluation, patent preparation and prosecution, product clearance, inter partes reviews (IPRs), litigation management, reexamination, and licensing. Drawing on his experience as both IP counsel and angel investor, Steven also conducts due diligence analysis in preparation of angel or venture capital investments, mergers, or acquisitions.

As a high tech patent lawyer, Steven frequently handles complex investigations on behalf of clients, which ultimately demonstrate that their products do not infringe on third-party patents, or that the third-party patents are invalid. In addition, he often helps clients in designing around third-party patents.

Drawing on his scientific background, Steven focuses his practice across a wide range of technologies, including: 

  • Medical devices, instrumentation, and laboratory equipment
  • Electrical systems and electronics
  • Computer hardware and software
  • Cloud computing, networking, routing, and IoT
  • Metrology
  • Energy, including alternative energy
  • High performance computing and graphics processing
  • Integrated circuit design, including microelectromechanical systems (MEMS)
  • Semiconductor fabrication and related materials processing

An active participant in the angel investor community, Steven hears dozens of presentations from early stage entrepreneurs annually as a member of both Hub Angels Investment Group and Launchpad Ventures. Steven also has been an advisory board member of numerous start-up companies, where he provided counsel on management strategy and assisted in raising capital from other angel investors and venture capitalists.

A leader in the legal industry, Steven has been involved in numerous professional organizations and activities:

  • Boston University, adjunct faculty/visiting lecturer
  • MIT 100K Business Plan Competition, judge and mentor
  • MIT Venture Mentor Service
  • MIT Sandbox Mentor
  • Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship
  • MIT Delta V program, mentor
  • Massachusetts Innovation Network and New England Innovation Program, mentor
  • MassVentures, START Reviewer
  • Harvard Club Entrepreneurs’ Roundtable, co-manager
  • Coulter Foundation Committee, Boston University
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston University, Boston College, Northeastern University, and the Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, guest lecturer
  • Boston University Ignition Award Program, board member
  • American Intellectual Property Law Association
  • Boston Bar Association, member, committee chair, and guest speaker
  • Boston Patent Law Association, member and guest speaker
  • Tau Beta Pi (the oldest engineering honor society in the United States), lifetime member

Prior to joining Nutter, Steven was a partner at a New England-based intellectual property law firm.

Experience

Experience

  • AppwoRx LLC

    Nutter served as legal counsel to AppwoRx LLC, a Boston-based medical technology manufacturer, in connection with its acquisition by PatientNOW, a private equity-backed computer software company headquartered in Englewood, CO.

News & Insights

News

Speaking Engagements

Honors

Honors

  • Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, "Go-To Intellectual Property Lawyer," 2021
  • Peer Review and Judicial Rated as AV® Preeminent™, the highest performance ratings in Martindale-Hubbell’s attorney rating system
  • Massachusetts Super Lawyers, 2006, 2014-2023
  • Massachusetts Super Lawyers, Rising Star, 2005-2006
  • Tau Beta Pi (the oldest engineering honor society in the United States)
  • The Best Lawyers in America, 2020-2024

Education & Admissions

Education

University of Maine School of Law, J.D.
Boston University, B.S., magna cum laude

Admissions

  • Massachusetts
  • U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts
  • U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

In the Community

A leader in the legal industry, Steven has been involved in numerous professional organizations and activities:

  • Boston University, adjunct faculty/visiting lecturer
  • MIT 100K Business Plan Competition, judge and mentor
  • MIT Venture Mentor Service
  • MIT Sandbox Mentor
  • MIT Delta V program, mentor
  • Massachusetts Innovation Network and New England Innovation Program, mentor
  • Harvard Club Entrepreneurs’ Roundtable, co-manager
  • Coulter Foundation Committee, Boston University
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston University, Boston College, Northeastern University, and the Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, guest lecturer
  • Boston University Ignition Award Program, board member
  • American Intellectual Property Law Association
  • Boston Bar Association, member, committee chair, and guest speaker
  • Boston Patent Law Association, member and guest speaker
  • Tau Beta Pi (the oldest engineering honor society in the United States), lifetime member

Noteworthy

  • Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, "Go-To Intellectual Property Lawyer," 2021
  • Peer Review and Judicial Rated as AV® Preeminent™, the highest performance ratings in Martindale-Hubbell’s attorney rating system
  • Massachusetts Super Lawyers, 2006, 2014-2023
  • Massachusetts Super Lawyers, Rising Star, 2005-2006
  • Tau Beta Pi (the oldest engineering honor society in the United States)
  • The Best Lawyers in America, 2020-2024
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