1420 Fifth Avenue Suite 3700, Seattle, WA USA 98101
Dario Machleidt is a trial lawyer. Since 2023, he has first-chaired four federal jury trials and an ITC evidentiary hearing. His recent track record includes winning jury verdicts, landmark rulings, and results that make a difference for his clients.
Dario excels under pressure. During one demanding stretch, he finished a jury trial in Philadelphia on a Friday, caught the train to Washington, D.C. that night, and by Monday morning was delivering the opening statement and examining his client's CEO in an ITC hearing against one of the world’s largest electronics companies. In his last two jury trials (2024 and 2026), he led his clients to victories—handling trial strategy, voir dire, opening statements, closing arguments, and cross-examination of key witnesses. Take a look at this article (subscription required) to get a flavor for Dario’s oral advocacy.
Dario spends most of his time litigating patent cases and has represented plaintiffs and defendants in lawsuits involving a diverse mix of technology. In recent years, however, he has enjoyed expanding his litigation and trial portfolio to include whatever matters clients send his way. His experience includes: winning at trial a trade dress case in California; first-chairing a first-of-its-kind lawsuit successfully asserting Washington State’s Patent Troll Prevention Act; and litigating to the brink of trial a defamation case that his client won on summary judgment mere days before the parties were set to pick a jury.
Dario’s commitment to trial work started early. As a Special Deputy Prosecutor in King County, he served as co-trial counsel in five felony jury trials—selecting juries, delivering openings and closings, and examining witnesses. Before joining Kilpatrick, he played a key role in Bowman v. Monsanto Co., a pro bono patent case that reached the U.S. Supreme Court, where he was the only associate to chair the Supreme Court oral argument.
He externed for Judge Randall R. Rader on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and served as Comments and Articles Editor of the Pacific Rim Law & Policy Journal.
Dario takes pride in being an active member of the Washington legal community. He has served in numerous local committee roles over the years, including as President of the executive committees of the Seattle IP Inn of Court and the Washington State Bar Association’s IP Section.
Dario is fortunate to have received various accolades over the years:
- The Best Lawyers in America® named Dario its 2027 “Lawyer of the Year – Patent Litigation” in Washington. Only one lawyer in each practice area and geographic community receives that distinction. Best Lawyers has also recognized Dario for Intellectual Property Litigation and Patent Litigation since 2024 and named him to its “Ones to Watch” list for Intellectual Property Litigation in 2022.
- Managing Intellectual Property named Dario its 2025 “Litigator of the Year” for Washington and recognized him as an “IP Star” in 2024, 2025, and 2026.
- Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business has recognized Dario in the Intellectual Property category since 2022.
- IAM Patent 1000 – The World’s Leading Patent Practitioners recognized Dario as a leading practitioner in 2024, 2025, and 2026.
- World IP Review named Dario a “Patent Leader” in 2025.
- Super Lawyers recognized Dario as a Washington “Super Lawyer” in 2024, 2025, and 2026, and as a “Rising Star” from 2012 through 2023.
Experience
Patent Troll Prevention Act Trial Victory (Valve v. Rothschild): Represented the plaintiff, Valve Corporation, in the first-ever jury trial under Washington State’s Patent Troll Prevention Act, securing a complete victory for his client. The verdict established important precedent for companies challenging bad-faith patent assertion tactics.
Trade Dress Trial Victory (Iconic Mars v. Kaotica): First-chaired a trial resulting in a complete jury win for his client, Kaotica Corporation, including a finding of willful infringement and an award exceeding $700,000 after enhanced damages, a permanent injunction, and attorney fees (leading to a $2.5 million total judgment for his client). When the opposing party attempted to avoid the judgment by dissolving the company, the Kilpatrick team successfully held the CEO personally liable.
Federal Circuit Reversal (Barry v. DePuy): After a district court excluded key experts and entered judgment against Kilpatrick’s client, the team won a full reversal on appeal—where the Federal Circuit held that the trial judge abused his discretion—and defeated DePuy's petition for en banc review.
$20+ Million Jury Verdict (Barry v. Medtronic): Secured a jury verdict in a contentious medical device patent infringement dispute that the National Law Journal recognized as one of the “Top 100 Verdicts of 2016.”
Defamation Win (Rothschild v. Lamkin): Litigated a defamation case to the brink of trial, securing summary judgment for his client just days before jury selection.
High-Stakes ITC & District Court Litigation (Nike v. adidas): Represented adidas in one of the largest patent disputes in the footwear industry, which involved nine patents across multiple families, and achieved a favorable resolution after completing fact and expert discovery.
Summary Judgment Victory in Licensing Dispute (ASU v. Seattle Genetics): Won a definitive summary judgment for Seattle Genetics in a multi-forum, years-long licensing and breach-of-contract battle involving a life-saving cancer therapy.
Insights View All
University of Washington School of Law J.D.
(2009)
Intellectual Property Concentration,
Pacific Rim Law & Policy Journal, Comments and Articles Editor
Moot Court Honor Board, Member
1L Moot Court Appellate Advocacy Competition, Champion
University of Washington B.S. (2006) Physics, cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa
Washington (2009)
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington
U.S. Supreme Court
Seattle Intellectual Property American Inn of Court, Executive Committee Member and Past President
Washington State Bar Association IP Section, Executive Committee Member and Past Chair
Federal Circuit Bar Association, Member
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