It's been more than six months since the US Supreme Court's Halo decision lowered the bar for proving willful infringement, and this boon for plaintiffs is quickly changing trial strategy. WilmerHale Partner Natalie Hanlon Leh will join a panel of experienced litigators who will begin by examining how courts post-Halo have decided the sufficiency of pleading for enhanced damages at the motion-to-dismiss stage. Then, the panel will consider the factors that have most strongly influenced recent district court decisions to enhance—or not enhance—damages, including notice by the patent owner (such as cases CH2O and Finjan), copying (Westerbeke, Imperium and PPC), and opinions of counsel (Dominion, Presidio and Boston University). A favorably timed opinion of counsel can prove successful in warding off a finding of willfulness, but defendants need to consider the effect of an opinion of counsel on attorney-client privilege.