Overview
Genevieve Wallace retired from the partnership of Susman Godfrey in 2025, after 18 years of practice in the Seattle office of the firm. She had a diverse commercial practice – representing both plaintiffs and defendants, individuals and Fortune 500 companies, and advocating for her clients in federal and state court, before administrative tribunals, and in arbitration.
During her law career, Wallace was known for her devotion to her clients, her ability to lead through inspiration, and, most notably, for using strategic problem-solving and outside-the- box thinking. This is nowhere more apparent than in her bringing Susman Godfrey’s successful patent litigation practice to the International Trade Commission (ITC), where Wallace was involved in several intellectual property investigations.
After her retirement from Susman Godfrey, Wallace will practice as a psychotherapist, helping lawyers and other professionals in high-pressure careers cope with the mental health impacts.
Notable Representations
- TravelPass v. Expedia (AAA arbitration and D. Utah) Served as lead counsel for Expedia in this breach of contract and trade secret misappropriation case. Wallace was hired before the litigation was filed, preparing the company’s defenses and in settlement negotiations. After the plaintiff filed suit in Utah, Wallace successfully achieved a complete stay of that litigation and moved the claims to a AAA arbitration, where discovery is now ongoing.
- VHT v. Zillow (W.D. Wash.) Defended Zillow against claims that its web site and mobile applications infringed copyrights in nearly 100,000 photographs of residential real estate photographs contained in listings provided by customers of the copyright owner VHT Inc. The Ninth Circuit affirmed judgment for Zillow on all but a handful of the images and vacated the award of statutory damages for the remainder.
- Amazon v. CafeX (S.D.N.Y) Represented Amazon Web Services in trademark litigation against CafeX Communications. CafeX alleged trademark infringement and unfair competition by Amazon, saying that Amazon launched its “Chime” communications platform that directly infringes CafeX’s “Chime” software for video and voice conferencing, web chat and document sharing. Judge Marrero denied CafeX’s request for a preliminary injunction, a significant success for Wallace and the Amazon team. The case recently reached a confidential settlement.
- Fractus v. Samsung et al. (E.D. Tex.) Represented Fractus in a patent case involving antennas for mobile phones. Before trial, Fractus reached licenses with all the original Defendants except for Samsung. These licenses resulted in agreements worth up to nearly $70 million in total. The trial resulted in a $23 million verdict for Fractus against Samsung, and the Court awarded an additional $15 million in enhanced damages. After judgment was entered, the case settled for a confidential sum.
- Fractus v. ZTE (E.D. Tex.) Represented Fractus in a follow-on patent case involving their successful mobile phone antenna technology.
- WizKids v. Wizards of the Coast (W.D. Wash.) Represented patent-holder Wizards of the Coast in a patent infringement case. After successfully opposing two early summary judgment motions, the case settled just before Markman proceedings.
- In 2012 and 2013, Wallace represented a world-renowned surgeon in cases pending in federal court and arbitration against a medical device manufacturer. The lawsuits resulted in a confidential settlement after a patent inventorship trial in federal court and all arbitration proceedings completed.
- T-Mobile USA. v. IDT Domestic Telecom. Represented T-Mobile in a breach of contract suit pending in King County Superior Court in Washington and defended the company against unfair competition counter-claims. The case settled days before trial was to begin.
Honors & Distinctions
Honors and Awards
- Lawdragon 500 Leading Litigator (2022 - 2025)
- Future Star, Benchmark Litigation (2022, Euromoney)
- Recommended Lawyer – Commercial Litigation, Best Lawyers in America (2021, 2022, 2023 Woodward White Inc.)
- Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Financial Lawyers (2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025)
- Super Lawyer, Washington Law & Politics Magazine – an honor awarded to the top 5% of lawyers in Washington (Thomson Reuters, 2019 – 2022).
- Under 40 Hot List, Benchmark Litigation (Euromoney, 2017)
- Leading Patent Professional - Patent Litigation, IAM Patent 1000 (2017)
- Rising Star, Washington Law & Politics Magazine – an honor awarded to the top 2.5% of lawyers in Washington (Thomson Reuters, 2013-2018)
- Nominated by client Fractus, S.A. to the “Fractus Hall of Fame”
- Articles Editor, University of Michigan Law Review
Clerkships
- John C. Coughenour,, United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, 2006-2007
- Betty Binns Fletcher, United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, 2005-2006
Education
Education
- The University of Michigan Law School (J.D., cum laude, 2005)
- Amherst College (B.A., magna cum laude, English/Women and Gender Studies, magna cum laude, 2000)
Admissions
Admissions
Bar Admissions
- Washington
