David W. Hansen, Class of 1984

Intellectual property and technology attorney at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

As a partner in the Palo Alto office of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, David Hansen has represented a broad range of clients in all aspects of intellectual property and other complex commercial litigation and arbitration. With the firm for more than 25 years, Hansen served as the special intellectual property counsel to the Aspen Institute’s International Digital Economy Accords (IDEA) Project, which involved key government officials, business executives and nonprofit sector leaders. He has represented companies such as SanDisk, Seagate Technology LLC, Sun Microsystems, Yahoo!, Virgin Mobile USA and Verizon Wireless.

Hansen regularly writes and speaks on intellectual property issues, including as a lecturer for the past eight years in the computer science department of Stanford University. He is annually ranked as a Leading Lawyer in intellectual property litigation by Chambers USA and the Daily Journal has recognized him as one of California’s top intellectual property lawyers. He is listed as a top patent litigator in The Best Lawyers in America and he is a member of the group recognized by The National Law Journal as one of the country’s leading IP practices in its 2013 “IP Hot List.” Hansen has also received the Wiley M. Manual Award for Pro Bono Legal Services from Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto.