Michael Heim

Partner
609 Main Street, Suite 3200 | Houston, TX 77002
Download vCard
Home > Attorneys > Michael Heim

About Michael Heim

Michael Heim is the founding partner and managing director of the firm. He possesses a unique breadth of experience in the patent industry with more than 30 years of litigation experience, coupled with extensive experience developing strategies for managing and enforcing patent portfolios. He was recognized in 2023 by IAM Patent 1000 – The World’s Leading Patent Professionals, which said he is as astute as they come when analyzing the technical side of a case and has tremendous experience litigating against all the major Big Tech firms. He is honest, timely and extremely good at his craft.”

Mike’s principal focus is intellectual property litigation, and he is known in the industry as a skilled litigator of complex patent cases. He has led litigation teams from complaint to judgment in federal district courts in the Eastern District of Texas and across the country, winning favorable settlements and judgments for his clients. Mike also has extensive experience handling appeals in patent cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Mike has a degree in electrical engineering, and early in his career, served three years as a Patent Examiner at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office where he specialized in examining patent applications involving electrical communications and computer software and hardware. He often litigates cases involving technology related to his expertise in the electronics field, including computer hardware and software and wireless communications. Particularly, he has handled cases in fields such as microprocessors, video processors, antenna technology, multi-player on-line gaming systems, wireless LANs and Bluetooth technology. Mr. Heim has also litigated class action antitrust lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies misusing intellectual property laws to maintain exclusive rights to brand-name drugs in order to keep generic products from entering the market.

Mike has been recognized as a leading lawyer by Forbes Magazine, Thomson-Reuters’ Super Lawyers, Chambers USA, H Texas Magazine and IP Law & Business, among others. He has served as past President of the State Bar of Texas Intellectual Property Section and the Houston Intellectual Property Law Section. Mr. Heim has frequently lectured on litigation and intellectual property matters.

Representative Cases
  • MicroUnity Systems Engineering, Inc. (represented plaintiff in enforcing its media processor patent portfolio against the computer and mobile phone industry, including some of the largest companies in the world) (Read the Law360 Article)
  • Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation v. Lenovo (United States) Inc. et al (represented Australian Government’s CSIRO against entire wireless LAN industry after orchestrating victories before the US Patent & Trademark Office in post-grant Reexamination proceedings; obtained numerous favorable settlements against major industry players) (Read the Law360 articlehttps://www.ipaustralia.gov.au/tools-resources/case-studies/csiro-wlan-patent)
  • Fractus, S.A. v. Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. et al (successfully enforced and licensed client’s multiband antenna portfolio client against majority of cell phone industry, and later obtained a significant judgment against Samsung for willfully infringing patent) (Read the Law360 article)
  • PalTalk Holdings, Inc. (represented client in successfully enforcing multiplayer on-line gaming patents against multiple defendants, including Microsoft and Sony) (https://www.paltalk.com/press/paltalk-holdings-inc.-and-microsoft-corp.-reach-settlement-and-enter-licensing-agreement)
  • Rembrandt Wireless Technologies v. Samsung Electronics, et al (successfully represented plaintiff on its Bluetooth +EDR patents at trial and obtained a substatial jury verdict against Samsung; also handled appellate argument which resulted in affirmance on liability and damages issues) (Read More)
  • SuperSpeed, LLC v (represented plaintiff on its data fusion caching system and obtained a favorable confidential settlement against Oracle and IBM)
  • Two-Way Media vs. AT&T (represented plaintiff and obtained jury verdict for client; significant judgment affirmed on appeal) (Read the Law360 article)
  • In re Buspar (represented the Direct Purchaser plaintiffs, which obtained a substantial settlement)
  • In re K-Dur (represented Direct Purchaser class, which obtained significant settlement)
  • In re Cardizem (represented the Direct Purchaser plaintiffs)
  • In re Remeron (represented Direct Purchaser plaintiffs, which obtained a substantial settlement)
  • In re Hytrin (represented the Direct Purchaser class of plaintiffs and obtained a favorable settlement)
Awards & Honors
  • Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigators in America, 2023-2025, Intellectual Property Litigation and Patent Litigation
  • Named Top 1000 Leading IP Professional in Intellectual Asset Management’s (IAM) Patent 1000, 2017-present
  • IAM Strategy 300: The World’s Leading IP Strategists, 2019, 2024
  • Chambers USA, 2005-2024, Leading Lawyers in America
  • IP Stars, 2018-2020, by Managing Intellectual Property magazine
  • Best Lawyers in America, 2006-present
  • Best Lawyers, Lawyer of the Year (Houston), Intellectual Property Litigation and Patent Litigation, 2024
  • Best Lawyers, Lawyer of the Year (Houston), Patent Litigation, 2022
  • Best Lawyers, Lawyer of the Year (Houston), Intellectual Property Litigation, 2020
  • Texas Super Lawyers, 2004-present, by Thomson Reuters
  • Ranked among the Best Law Firms, 2016-2019, by US News & World Report and Best Lawyers
  • Top 100 Super Lawyers in Houston, 2018, 2021-2023, by Thomson Reuters
  • Patent Stars, 2017, by Managing Intellectual Property magazine
  • Outstanding Antitrust Litigation Achievement in Private Law Practice (2017) for In re K-Dur litigation
  • Best Lawyers in Houston, 2004-2019, by H Texas Magazine
  • Best IP Lawyers in America, 2007-2014, by IP Law & Business
  • Named as a leading lawyer in Texas by Forbes Magazine, 2007
  • AV Preeminent Rated by Martindale-Hubbell
Professional Affiliations
  • Houston Intellectual Property Law Association (Past President)
  • State Bar of Texas Intellectual Property Law Association (Past President)
  • American Intellectual Property Law Association
  • American Bar Association (Intellectual Property Section)
  • Houston Bar Association
Super Lawyers 2024
Michael Heim | Best Lawyers 2025
Lawyer of the Year IP badge
Lawyer of the Year Patent badge
Lawdragon Leading Litigators 2025
IAM 1000
IAM Strategy 300 icon-2

We welcome your email, but please understand that communications via email or through this website do not constitute or create an attorney-client relationship between you and Heim, Payne & Chorush LLP or any of its lawyers. Unless we reach an agreement with regard to representation, the information you provide will not be treated as confidential or privileged, and any such information may be used adversely to you and for the benefit of current or future clients of the law firm.

CancelI Agree