Fish & Richardson Principals Juanita Brooks, Roger Denning Named Among San Diego's Finest Attorneys by SD Metro

Fish & Richardson principals Juanita Brooks and Roger Denning have been named to San Diego Metro Magazine’s list of San Diego’s Finest Attorneys for their demonstrated success in, and out, of the courtroom as well as their dedication to the local legal profession.

The powerhouse attorneys, both based in the firm’s Southern California office, join just 24 other lawyers in being recognized by the publication.

Brooks, an intellectual property litigator, is renowned for her hard-hitting cross examinations, distinctive ability to connect with judges and juries, and inherent talent for decoding sophisticated technologies using colloquial language and relatable concepts—skills she gladly shares with the next generation of lawyers.

Before joining Fish in 2000, Brooks had a significant San Diego trial practice—the first private criminal defense practice in the city owned by a Hispanic woman. Brooks reinvented her practice at Fish, rising to become one of the nation’s leading intellectual property and patent law litigators, representing Fortune 100 and startup companies alike. In her 16 years at Fish, Brooks has served as first chair on more than dozens of patent cases for clients such as Fresenius, Allergan, Microsoft, Apple, 3M and Cephalon.

Throughout her career, Brooks has tried several cases that have made lasting impacts on patent law. She, too, has been instrumental in drafting the original and subsequent amendments to the Southern District of California’s local patent rules.

Denning, managing principal of the firm’s San Diego office, is an electrical engineer by training whose practice centers on complex litigation in the patent-infringement and technology-related aspects of law.

A much sought after attorney, Denning represents both small, local businesses and large, international organizations in IP infringement cases. Most notably, Denning tried a case, Callaway v. Acushnet, which pitted the golf giants against one another in a patent infringement fight over popular golf balls. The case was tried by a jury twice before being appealed in federal court. Beyond the courtroom, Denning oversees the firm’s 32-attorney office in Southern California and serves on Fish’s national management committee.

Denning also has devoted many hours to pro bono legal services. Many other Fish attorneys, with the encouragement of Denning, provide hours of free legal aid to indigent clients whose cases would otherwise go unrepresented.