Sharif E. Jacob

San Francisco

Sharif Jacob arrived at Keker, Van Nest & Peters LLP in 2008 with an interest in cutting-edge technology that has shaped his practice ever since. He carries one of the firm's busiest IP dockets, with active matters spanning patent, trademark and trade secret disputes for clients that include Netflix, Meta, Instacart, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Perplexity AI, MongoDB and Silicon Valley Bank's successor trust.

The matter Jacob points to as a turning point came in patent litigation Broadcom brought against Netflix. Broadcom claimed that a single patent entitled it to more than a billion dollars in damages. The patent described "a network adapted to process data," which Jacob's team argued was nothing more than the abstract idea of routing information. U.S. District Judge James J. Donato agreed, tracing the concept back to at least 1878 and comparing it to the work of a telephone switchboard operator. After he granted summary judgment, 85% of Broadcom's requested damages evaporated, and Broadcom stipulated to dismiss the remaining patents.

Jacob's current portfolio reflects IP practice's growing intersection with emerging technology. He is defending Meta in a five-patent case asserting that its artificial intelligence voice recognition technology infringes patents held by Dialect and representing Hewlett Packard Enterprise against claims brought by Memray MT LLC, "a litigation-focused U.S. subsidiary of a Korean technology company." Memray v. HPE, 2:25-cv-970 (E.D. Tex., filed Sept. 22, 2025). Jacob is also defending Perplexity AI in a dispute with Reddit over alleged data scraping.

On the trademark side, Jacob represents SVB Financial Trust in a case alleging that First Citizens improperly continued using the "SVB" name, logo and domain after acquiring Silicon Valley Bank's assets from the FDIC without acquiring the underlying intellectual property. SVB Financial Trust v. First-Citizens Bank and Trust Company, 3:25-cv-02267 (N.D. Cal., filed March 5, 2025). Lastly, Jacob is representing MongoDB in asserting patent, trademark dilution, and false advertising claims against FerretDB. MongoDB, Inc. v. FerretDB Inc., 1:25-cv-00641 (D. Del., filed May 23, 2025).

Earlier this year, Jacob "quickly dispatched a competitor suit against Instacart asserting trademark infringement claims against its new snack delivery application, Fizz," defeating a preliminary injunction motion and moving to dismiss before securing a favorable settlement in December 2025.

In his pro bono practice, he is leading a team challenging an executive order prohibiting relatives of service members from receiving gender-affirming care under TRICARE. Doe v. Department of Defense, 8:25-cv-02947 (D. Md., filed Oct. 29, 2025).

Jacob's read on the litigation environment is unsparing: "Plaintiffs pursuing patent litigation currently have the wind at their backs. IPRs have lost their utility because of the recent increase in discretionary denials. And the Federal Circuit has become much less involved in policing forum shopping." His conclusion: "aggressive, early motions combined with a winning trial strategy are as important as ever."