Shook Hardy & Bacon adds two from Microsoft

Managing IP is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 1-2 Paris Gardens, London, SE1 8ND

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2026

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

Shook Hardy & Bacon adds two from Microsoft

Shook Hardy & Bacon has added partners Bill Harmon and John Mulgrew to its Seattle office

shook20microsoft20hires.jpg

Harmon joined the firm on December 1. He served as an assistant general counsel at Microsoft within the patent litigation group.

During his 11-year tenure at Microsoft, Harmon also served as a leader in their digital crimes unit, global standards group, and intellectual property group.

Mulgrew joined the firm on October 1. He most recently served as an assistant general counsel and team leader for patent conflicts at Microsoft.

He served as IP and general counsel for all Microsoft Research organisations across Europe and the Middle East and handled all patent matters for subsidiaries in the region. Upon his return to the US, Mulgrew led a patent analysis team with broad responsibilities for developing IP strategies.

They join Bart Eppenauer, managing partner of Shook’s Seattle office and Microsoft’s former chief patent counsel.

more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

Senior UK judges discussing the impact of AI on the judiciary, and the role of in-house IP lawyers during corporate transactions and carve-outs were among the top talking points
Tarun Khurana, founding partner of Khurana & Khurana, discusses juggling tasks, why every hour has a value, and the importance of ‘trusting the process’
Annual Meeting hears that IP firms are targeting hires with technical literacy in a fragmented landscape, and that those that build an online presence will distinguish themselves from the digital chaos
How law firms can secure themselves in a technology-driven IP landscape and how IP teams can develop future leadership were among the top talking points
The variety of winners demonstrates that the UPC is now a core benchmark rather than an experimental consideration, while junior lawyers are becoming more deeply involved in key work
The Indian government announcing a fee waiver for sports-related IP registrations, and the US adding the EU to its IP 'watch list' were also among major developments
Sources say the judge could return to a disputes or mediation-focussed role, though others have questioned whether the Texas court will remain a litigation hotspot in his absence
Sheppard, which has hired 14 IP partners in the last 12 months, has cited client demand for expert counsel in SEP, ITC, and district court disputes
Tingxi Huo joins our ‘Five minutes with’ series to discuss boosting the value of clients’ IP and the importance of reflection
Hefty legal teams assembled for a three-day hearing in what was the court’s first foray into SEPs since Unwired Planet v Huawei
Gift this article