Former Judge Yeakel Reflects on Patent Novice-to-Expert Journey

Judge Lee Yeakel, who retired from the federal judiciary earlier this week, learned just about everything he knows about patent law from two decades on the bench.

And he knows a lot, having presided over more than 400 patent cases while serving as an Austin-based judge in the US District Court for the Western District of Texas, the busiest patent venue in the country.

“I spent 28 1/2 years practicing law before I ever went on the bench, and I had a varied and eclectic law practice,” Yeakel told Bloomberg Law. “I might’ve been the last pure generalist.”

“But ...