William F. Lee
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William F. Lee is a prominent lawyer and the Co-Managing Partner of the international law firm of WilmerHale, which was formed from the merger of Wilmer Cutler and Hale and Dorr. He is the first Asian-American to lead a major American law firm.
Lee received an A.B. magna cum laude from Harvard University in 1972; an M.B.A. with Distinction from Cornell University in 1976, and a J.D., magna cum laude and Order of the Coif, from Cornell Law School in 1976. Lee joined Hale & Dorr in 1976, and was managing partner from 2000 to 2004. He also chaired the firm's Litigation Department for four years. He is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.
William F. Lee is married to Leslie Lee. He is also father of three children - Christopher, Catherine and Margaret.
Public Service
From July 1987 through June 1989, Mr. Lee served as associate counsel to Independent Counsel Lawrence E. Walsh in the Iran-Contra investigation. In that capacity, he was responsible for certain portions of the grand jury investigation and resulting indictments. He also has served as a special assistant to the Massachusetts Attorney General for the purpose of investigating alleged incidents of racial bias in the Commonwealth's courts.
Mr. Lee has served as a visiting professor at Harvard Law School, where he taught intellectual property litigation. In May 2000, Mr. Lee was one of 15 attorneys to be named by the chief judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit to the court's Advisory Committee.
In June 2002, Mr. Lee was elected to the Board of Overseers of Harvard University, an appointment that he adds to his duties as a member of the Visiting Committee at Cornell Law School. He previously served as vice chairman of the board of the Boston University Medical Center University Hospital, a trustee of the Boston Medical Center and an overseer of the Museum of Science.
Press Mentions
- Selected by peers for inclusion in every issue of The Best Lawyers in America since 1995/1996
- Named one of "The 100 Most Influential Lawyers in America" by The National Law Journal in June 2000 and again in June 2006. In 2000, the NLJ highlighted Mr. Lee's "long record of favorable jury verdicts," achieved while leading the firm to a dominant presence in technology nationally and internationally and in pro bono services locally. In June 2006, he was cited for his leadership in the merger that formed WilmerHale and again for his significant involvement in notable trials, including a recent victory in an infringement case against Hewlett-Packard Co. on behalf of EMC Corp. (settled in 2005 for $325 million while on appeal).
- Listed in each edition of Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business since 2003. Was the only Massachusetts lawyer awarded the "star" ranking in intellectual property (a stand-alone award above the number one ranking) (2004, 2005 and 2006 editions).
- Recognized for his exceptional intellectual property practice in the 2006 and 2007 editions of Chambers Global: The World's Leading Lawyers
- Listed in the 2006-2007 edition of the PLC IP & IT Cross-Border Handbook as both a "leading" lawyer for intellectual property in Boston and for patent litigation in the US
- Ranked as one of the nation's most highly recommended intellectual property attorneys in the 2006/07 edition of the PLC Cross-border Life Sciences Handbook
- Selected as a "patent law expert" in Legal Media Group's Guide to the World's Leading Patent Law Practitioners 2007
- Recognized as one of Boston's top lawyers in the dispute resolution and intellectual property, and as national leader in patent litigation in the PLC Which Lawyer? Yearbook 2006. Also listed as one of four "star" lawyers of the firm in the 2005 edition.
- Selected as one of The National Law Journal’s 2005 "Top Ten Lawyers with Successful Trial Strategies"