Trends in U.S. Intellectual Property Litigation: Growth, Diversification, and Cross-Jurisdictional Expansion

Key Takeaways

• Growth in filings: IP filings in the United States have surged from fewer than 3,000 annual cases in the mid-2000s to nearly 19,000 by 2025. Today, the U.S. IP litigation landscape is characterized by a significant diversification of case types; while patent litigation once dominated, the field is now a balanced mix of patent, copyright, trademark, and trade secret disputes.

• Global multi-jurisdictional strategies: Enforcement has moved away from a U.S.-centric model toward coordinated, multi-forum strategies. Practitioners now leverage specific jurisdictions for specialized outcomes: the U.S. for monetary damages, Europe (specifically Germany and the EU’s Unified Patent Court) for rapid injunctions, and the United Kingdom for global FRAND (fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory) rate-setting.

• The rise of Asia:Patent grants have increased markedly since 2005, with growth accelerating in the past decade and shifting toward Asia. China has become the primary driver of global patent growth, while India is the fastest-growing major jurisdiction for patent litigation.

• Digital and AI transformation: Generative AI has sparked a surge in copyright litigation (approaching 100 cases) regarding training data and fair use. Simultaneously, e-commerce has driven high-volume “Schedule A” cases in trademarks and patents, targeting large networks of online sellers.

• Damages volatility: Patent damages in the United States have entered a higher and significantly more volatile regime over recent years. Annual plaintiff awards surpassed $3 billion in 2023 and have remained at this elevated level through 2024 and 2025, driven almost entirely by a small number of outsized “blockbuster” verdicts. Several of these individual top awards exceed $300 million and are heavily concentrated in the technology and life sciences sectors.

While the United States’ role in IP enforcement has decreased relative to other jurisdictions, it’s still critical and has expanded beyond patent litigation to include trade secret, trademark, and AI-related copyright disputes.

“While the United States’ role in IP enforcement has decreased relative to other jurisdictions, it’s still critical and has expanded beyond patent litigation to include trade secret, trademark, and AI-related copyright disputes,” said Shane Oka, a coauthor of the report and cohead of Cornerstone Research’s IP practice. “Meanwhile, U.S. patent litigation has become increasingly concentrated in specific technologies and strategic venues serving primarily as the global battleground for securing massive monetary damages.”