Audra L. Thompson practices in the area of litigation. Ms. Thompson litigates complex civil litigation matters including intellectual property, specifically copyright and trademark infringement. Ms. Thompson also works with clients in drafting and negotiating software license agreements. Additional areas of practice include employment and coverage litigation.

Ms. Thompson is an active member in the intellectual property sections of the Beverly Hills Bar Association and State Bar of California. She also served as the secretary, newsletter editor and Education Committee co-chair for the Black Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles, Inc. She is currently on the Advisory Panel of the American Bar Association.

Ms. Thompson is a 2001 magna cum laude graduate of Texas Southern University, Thurgood Marshall School of Law, where she was a board member and editor of and contributor to the Thurgood Marshall Law Review, including serving as Chief Justice of the Honor Court. She is a graduate of the University of Houston Law Center (LL.M., Intellectual Property and Information Law, cum laude).

Representative Matters

• Stillman v. Novartis Consumer Health Inc. - Represented Defendants CVS Pharmacy Inc. and Walgreen Company in a patent infringement suit related to a generic product and obtained favorable result.
• Myriad Development, Inc. v. Alltech, Inc. (U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas) – Defended a national government contractor for disaster relief for misappropriation of trade secret. Favorable district court verdict with minimal damages. Matter currently pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
• Kelley v. Bethany Lowe Designs, Inc. (Central District of California) – Represented Defendant in copyright case and ultimately achieved favorable resolution.
• Safeco Insurance Company of America v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd's, London - Scored a victory on behalf of clients Lloyd's Underwriters and Württembergische Versicherung A.G. in a coverage action against a policyholder seeking reimbursement of over one million dollars in defense costs. In granting our clients summary judgment, the Los Angeles Superior Court found that the policyholder had failed to obtain the insurers' consent to settle an underlying claim, as required by the policy.
• CC-OPS, Inc. v. Digital Intelligence Systems Corp. - Obtained on behalf of Digital Intelligence Systems Corporation (DISYS) a voluntary dismissal with prejudice regarding a meritless contractual dispute.

Areas of Practice

• Commercial Litigation
• Intellectual Property
• Insurance Coverage Litigation

Admissions

• California
• U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
• U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California
• U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

Education

• University of Houston Law Center, LL.M., cum laude, 2002
• Texas Southern University, Thurgood Marshall School of Law, J.D., magna cum laude, 2001
  - Board Member, Editor & Contributor, Thurgood Marshall Law Review

Other Experience

• Duane Morris LLP
  - Senior Associate, 2006-present
• Greve, Clifford, Wengel & Paras, LLP
  - Associate, 2003-2006
• The Boston Law Firm
  - Associate/Law Clerk 2000-2002

Professional Activities

• American Bar Association
  - ABA Advisory Panel
• State Bar of California
  - Intellectual Property Section
• Minority Corporate Counsel Association
  - Firm Affiliate Network for Diverse Outside Counsel

Speaking Engagements

• Panelist, "Client Development: A Roadmap for Success in Today's Big Firm Environment," Duane Morris Diversity Retreat, 2012 – Panel discussion concerning challenges and solutions in developing business is the large law firm environment
• Panelist, "Diversity at Duane Morris: Past, Present and Future," Duane Morris Diversity Retreat, 2009 – Panel discussion addressing diversity from various viewpoints: management, practice group leadership, the Chief Diversity Officer, the Women’s Initiative and the associate’s perspective as to what actions should management take to improve the success of its diverse attorneys
• Panelist, "Assignments," Duane Morris Diversity Retreat, 2008 – Panel discussion regarding insightful suggestions on what partners and associates (at every level) can do to improve assignment work product and the quality of projects assigned
• Panelist, Duane Morris Inaugural Diversity Retreat, 2007