On May 20, Venable LLP partners Sarah Brooks and Rebecca Horton were named among the 2026 Top Intellectual Property Lawyers in California by the Daily Journal. This recognition highlights the top-performing intellectual property attorneys in the state.
"As a partner in Venable’s intellectual property litigation practice, Sarah Brooks handles patent and trademark matters in U.S. District Court and before the USPTO, where the margin for error is narrow and the procedural stakes are high," the Daily Journal wrote.
"The most important lesson I remember was about reading an email several times before sending it out—especially to a client—and never citing a case that goes the wrong way for you,” Brooks told the publication, of a lesson that has stuck with her throughout her career. “This is an especially important lesson to remember in the age of AI, when less and less case law is actually being reviewed by some practitioners."
"Rebecca Horton came to IP litigation through a combination of instinct and geography," wrote the Daily Journal. "Growing up in the Bay Area surrounded by startups, she developed an affinity for debate and a familiarity with the culture of innovation before she ever entered a courtroom. Eleven years into her practice, the work still holds her attention."
"IP litigation was therefore a natural fit, sitting at the intersection of innovation and advocacy," Ms. Horton explained. “It is work that I still find incredibly interesting and compelling to this day, helping clients protect and enforce their core assets without impeding future advancement and invention."
Ms. Brooks' recent wins include her representation of plaintiffs in a trademark counterfeiting and breach of contract jury trial. She and her team secured a full verdict for their clients, with the jury finding in favor of the plaintiffs and rejecting the defendants’ counterclaims in their entirety.
Ms. Horton’s recent wins include her representation of a studio whose digital infrastructure was seized in a cyberattack. By moving swiftly to secure a temporary restraining order within weeks and ultimately a court-ordered injunction restoring full control to the client, the matter underscored her and her team’s approach to high-stakes IP disputes—decisive and evidence-driven action that delivers favorable outcomes and restores operational stability so that clients can get back to business.
Click here to learn more about the recognition.