Newstex publishers' stories: R. David Donoghue of Chicago IP Litigation Blog

What motivated you to start working in the publishing industry? or what motivated you to start creating content/writing?

I started writing my blogs as a young lawyer. I was looking for both a way to show my growing IP litigation and Chicago-specific experience combined with a creative outlet. In essence, I was looking to expand my reputation and develop work. The thing I did not expect was the relationships that blogging has built for me. Fellow bloggers and blog readers have become professional and personal friends.

Could you share with us what you consider to be the most rewarding moment in your career so far?

The most rewarding moment of my career has been the IP trials I have done. The thrill of winning at trial is incredible, but the best part is the deep bonds trial teams build within my firm as well as with clients, experts and co-counsel. The most rewarding moment of my blogging career came early on, in 2010, when I won the Chicago Bar Association’s Herman Kogan Media Award for my extensive reporting on the Northern District of Illinois’ newly issued Local Patent Rules and their impact on patent litigation in the Chicago federal courts. Having my blogging awarded alongside major media outlets was incredible validation of the effort and a moment of great pride.

Have you ever seriously considered shutting down your publication, and if so, what was it that ultimately stopped you?

I have considered it several times, particularly as I am ramping up for a significant trial and struggle with the time for consistent blogging. But ultimately, the pride in my twenty years of consistent content and the value of the analysis over time keeps me going.

What are the biggest challenges you believe the publishing industry is facing right now?

As in most industries, consolidation and artificial intelligence. Too often you start reading an article and realize a few paragraphs in that the words are engaging but are not making a clear point or that you are reading four paragraphs that have three sentences worth of value in them. Also, the risk that we are not training journalists to do their own investigative reporting and writing. It would be an incredible loss to our society to lose the collective wisdom and ability of investigative reporting.

What does success look like for your publication over the next three years, and how are you working toward it?

Success for me has always been two-fold. First, my blogging helps build and burnish my reputation as a technology and IP trial lawyer generally and more specifically as a Chicago trial lawyer. Second, helping me connect with new and existing clients for help in technology and IP litigations. That is a combination of blog readers reaching out when they have litigation issues and new clients finding me when they come across a blog search as they begin to contemplate or deal with a technology dispute.

How has artificial intelligence changed the way you work, and do you see it more as a threat to the industry or as an opportunity?

As noted above, AI is definitely a threat to the skill and value of reporting. It can also be a significant benefit. AI is a powerful tool but for me it cannot replace reading every IP decision that is issued in the Northern District of Illinois which is valuable for my practice and clients, and critical for my blogging.

What was it that led you to decide to partner with Newstex, and what value has that relationship brought to your publication?

I started working with Newstex because it was another way to increase the reach of my content. I want readers and potential readers to have the broadest access to my content possible. Newstex did that and presented it professionally which is not true of every content syndicator.

R. David Donoghue is a proven first-chair technology and intellectual property (IP) trial attorney with significant jury trial victories. Based in the Chicago office, Mr. Donoghue has established a strong track record as lead trial counsel in complex patent, trade secret, trademark and copyright disputes across district courts, the International Trade Commission (ITC), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). As part of the IAM Patent 1000 Mr. Donoghue was described as: "A practical lawyer who gets right to the heart of any matter, David Donoghue really understands the most technical aspects of patent law. He is also great at figuring out how to win cases without spending a shed-load of his clients' money."