Miriam Kim

Miriam Kim

Miriam Kim is a partner in the San Francisco office of Munger, Tolles & Olson.

Her practice focuses on complex civil litigation, intellectual property, and high-stakes investigations. Named a Woman Leader in Tech Law in 2022 and a Top Trade Secrets Lawyer by the Daily Journal in 2021 and 2020, Miriam is a trusted, strategic adviser who works relentlessly to help clients solve their most challenging problems and achieve their goals. She has substantial experience in matters involving trade secrets and employee mobility, false advertising, products liability, unfair competition, and technology disputes.

Ms. Kim recently served as a practitioner fellow at the Berkeley Center for Law & Technology, focused on generative artificial intelligence (AI), and she provides guidance to companies on a range of legal issues related to the development, distribution, and use of AI. She co-chairs the firm’s Generative AI Task Force and is also a member of the firm’s Management Committee.

In 2024, Ms. Kim received OneJustice’s Champion of Justice award for her efforts to promote the use of generative AI to bridge the access to justice gap. In 2019, Ms. Kim was honored as a Thought Leader by Corporate Counsel in their Women, Influence & Power in Law awards. She was also named one of the “Best Lawyers Under 40” by the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) and received the Unity Award from the Minority Bar Coalition.

Ms. Kim speaks Korean and has successfully advocated for clients in a range of matters involving Korean companies. Ms. Kim’s pro bono practice is focused on the use of legal technology to increase access to justice, as well as the needs of immigrants and victims of sexual abuse.

Ms. Kim is a leader in the community and a frequent speaker on AI, access to justice, diversity, and elimination of bias. She is a member of the leadership team of the Silicon Valley chapter of ChIPs, a network for women in tech law. She is a past co-chair of the Northern District of California Lawyer Representatives to the Ninth Circuit, a past president of the Asian American Bar Association (AABA), and a former board member of the Bar Association of San Francisco (BASF) and the Justice & Diversity Center. While Ms. Kim was president of AABA, it was recognized as NAPABA’s 2017 Affiliate of the Year. She is also an active member of Christ Church East Bay.

Experience

Intellectual Property Litigation

Ms. Kim has significant experience handling trade secret cases, copyright cases involving software, and other IP matters for both plaintiffs and defendants. She has extensive experience leading internal investigations into potential theft of trade secrets or other confidential information. Her noteworthy matters include representing:

  • Applied Materials in:
    • A case regarding the alleged misappropriation by former employees of trade secrets relating to manufacturing of LEDs and lithium ion batteries. Ms. Kim also represented Applied Materials’ interests as the victim in a related criminal trial resulting in the conviction of a former employee.
    • A case against ASM and a former employee alleging threatened misappropriation of trade secrets relating to atomic layer deposition.
    • A successful defense of a jury trial against claims of patent infringement brought by Axcelis Technologies.
  • Checkr in a matter defending against allegations of trade secrets theft, unfair competition, and breach of contract.
  • Amgen in obtaining a favorable settlement on the eve of trial, including a mid-single digit royalty, resolving a trade secrets dispute brought against Coherus BioSciences involving the drug Neulasta®.
  • Green Hills Software in its successful five-month arbitration against claims of copyright infringement and unfair competition relating to application programming interfaces (APIs).
  • Rambus in a two-week bench trial defeating Samsung’s claim for $400 million in damages offset from future patent infringement liability.
  • Disney’s Playdom, an online social gaming company, in a copyright case involving source code. A favorable settlement was reached on the eve of trial.
  • Microsoft in a copyright and trade secret case involving voice over internet protocol (VoIP) software.

Complex Civil Litigation

Ms. Kim has substantial experience handling complex business litigation for semiconductor, software, and other technology companies and taking such cases to trial. Her significant representations include:

  • Lyft in cases alleging that drivers using Lyft’s platform should be treated as employees.
  • Intel Corporation against allegations of breach of contract, breach of warranty, and fraud brought by Brazilian smartphone manufacturer.
  • Quotient Technology in defeating a TRO seeking to compel Quotient to perform digital media and promotions services pursuant to a contract that was already terminated due to Albertsons’ material breach.

Product Liability and Marketing Issues

Ms. Kim has substantial experience handling litigation and investigations alleging product defects, false and misleading advertising, unfair business practices, and violations of other consumer protection laws. She also regularly counsels clients on claim substantiation, endorsements, use of generative AI, and other marketing issues. Matters include representing:

  • Intel Corporation in successfully settling, on the eve of trial, a consumer class action involving claims of unfair business practices with respect to the performance of Pentium 4 processors.
  • A food manufacturer in a case alleging failure to disclose certain levels of chemicals in products.
  • PepsiCo in a government investigation relating to the marketing of Gatorade.

Government and Internal Investigations

Ms. Kim has considerable experience leading internal investigations on a wide range of civil and criminal issues, including alleged trade secret theft, unfair competition, potential financial fraud, whistleblower claims, and potential securities law violations. She also defends companies under investigation by state and federal agencies. Ms. Kim’s experience in investigations includes representation of:

  • Pacific Gas & Electric in high-stakes wildfire cases and investigations, including a case in Sonoma County resulting in the dismissal of all criminal charges.
  • The California State Bar in an internal investigation of whistleblower claims that its CEO breached his fiduciary duties.
  • A technology company in an internal investigation of the potential use of competitor trade secrets.
  • A technology company in an internal investigation involving the potential embezzlement of company funds and a vendor kickback scheme.
  • A major mortgage company in a DOJ investigation of its disclosure and origination practices.

Publications

  • “Generative AI and Legal Aid: Results from a Field Study and 100 Use Cases to Bridge the Access to Justice Gap,” forthcoming in Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review, Vol. 57 (2024)
  • Co-Author, “How LLMs Can Help Address the Access to Justice Gap Through the Courts,” SSRN, January 4, 2024
  • “Strategies for Protecting Trade Secrets Amid Tech Layoffs,” Law360, February 2023

Speaking Engagements

  • “Generative AI: Where Are We and What Legal Challenges Await Us?,” Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference, July 2024 (forthcoming)
  • “Generative AI in the Legal Profession in the Courts,” California Bench Bar Coalition, June 2024 (forthcoming)
  • “Results from the First Field Study of AI for Legal Aid,” Talk Justice: An LSC Podcast, June 2024
  • “Pier to Pier Networking: Ethical Guidelines and Practical Advice On Artificial Intelligence,” California Bankruptcy Forum Annual Insolvency Conference, May 2024
  • “Trade Secrets Regulatory Session,” Trade Secrets IP Protection & Litigation West Coast Summit, April 2024
  • “Artificial Intelligence and Pro Bono,” OneJustice California Pro Bono Conference, January 2024 “Drafting an AI Policy: Ethical and Practical Issues,” OneJustice, December 2023
  • “AI and the Practice of Law,” Berkeley Stanford Advanced Patent Law Institute, December 2023
  • “Managing AI from a Legal Perspective: Contract and Litigation Skills,” Berkeley Law AI Institute, October 2023
  • “Generative AI: Your New Legal Assistant,” State Bar of California, October 2023
  • “Trade Secrets Theft: Civil Litigation,” Sandpiper Sixth Annual Trade Secrets Protection, Enforcement, and Litigation Conference, San Francisco, January 2023
  • “Strategies for Combating Implicit Bias,” Bar Association of San Francisco In-House Conference, January 2023 Hsu Untied Interview with Miriam Kim, December 2022
  • “Litigating Before Magistrate Judges in the Age of Zoom,” Federal Bar Association, September 2021
  • “Playing the Long Game: Building and Sustaining Genuine Professional Relationships,” California Minority Counsel Program, Women of Color Conference, May 2021
  • “An Arbitration Debate: ArbiGREAT? Or ArbiHATE?” Association of Business Trial Lawyers, March 2021 “Civil & Criminal Trade Secret Litigation Strategies,” Northern District Practice Program, February 2021
  • “Trial, Settlement, and Post-Judgment Oversight,” California Complex Civil Litigation Symposium, 2019
  • “Elimination of Bias in the Legal Profession and Society,” All Hands Meeting of the Silicon Valley Association of General Counsel, 2019
  • “Litigating and Defending Trade Secret & Employee Mobility Claims,” Bridgeport Trade Secret and Employee Mobility Conference, May 2018

Practice Areas

Industries

Education

  • UC Berkeley School of Law (J.D., 2002) Order of the Coif

  • Harvard University (A.B., magna cum laude, 1998)

Clerkships

  • Judge Levin H. Campbell, U.S. Court of Appeals, First Circuit, 2004-2005

Bar Admissions

  • California

Experience

Intellectual Property Litigation

Ms. Kim has significant experience handling trade secret cases, copyright cases involving software, and other IP matters for both plaintiffs and defendants. She has extensive experience leading internal investigations into potential theft of trade secrets or other confidential information. Her noteworthy matters include representing:

  • Applied Materials in:
    • A case regarding the alleged misappropriation by former employees of trade secrets relating to manufacturing of LEDs and lithium ion batteries. Ms. Kim also represented Applied Materials’ interests as the victim in a related criminal trial resulting in the conviction of a former employee.
    • A case against ASM and a former employee alleging threatened misappropriation of trade secrets relating to atomic layer deposition.
    • A successful defense of a jury trial against claims of patent infringement brought by Axcelis Technologies.
  • Checkr in a matter defending against allegations of trade secrets theft, unfair competition, and breach of contract.
  • Amgen in obtaining a favorable settlement on the eve of trial, including a mid-single digit royalty, resolving a trade secrets dispute brought against Coherus BioSciences involving the drug Neulasta®.
  • Green Hills Software in its successful five-month arbitration against claims of copyright infringement and unfair competition relating to application programming interfaces (APIs).
  • Rambus in a two-week bench trial defeating Samsung’s claim for $400 million in damages offset from future patent infringement liability.
  • Disney’s Playdom, an online social gaming company, in a copyright case involving source code. A favorable settlement was reached on the eve of trial.
  • Microsoft in a copyright and trade secret case involving voice over internet protocol (VoIP) software.

Complex Civil Litigation

Ms. Kim has substantial experience handling complex business litigation for semiconductor, software, and other technology companies and taking such cases to trial. Her significant representations include:

  • Lyft in cases alleging that drivers using Lyft’s platform should be treated as employees.
  • Intel Corporation against allegations of breach of contract, breach of warranty, and fraud brought by Brazilian smartphone manufacturer.
  • Quotient Technology in defeating a TRO seeking to compel Quotient to perform digital media and promotions services pursuant to a contract that was already terminated due to Albertsons’ material breach.

Product Liability and Marketing Issues

Ms. Kim has substantial experience handling litigation and investigations alleging product defects, false and misleading advertising, unfair business practices, and violations of other consumer protection laws. She also regularly counsels clients on claim substantiation, endorsements, use of generative AI, and other marketing issues. Matters include representing:

  • Intel Corporation in successfully settling, on the eve of trial, a consumer class action involving claims of unfair business practices with respect to the performance of Pentium 4 processors.
  • A food manufacturer in a case alleging failure to disclose certain levels of chemicals in products.
  • PepsiCo in a government investigation relating to the marketing of Gatorade.

Government and Internal Investigations

Ms. Kim has considerable experience leading internal investigations on a wide range of civil and criminal issues, including alleged trade secret theft, unfair competition, potential financial fraud, whistleblower claims, and potential securities law violations. She also defends companies under investigation by state and federal agencies. Ms. Kim’s experience in investigations includes representation of:

  • Pacific Gas & Electric in high-stakes wildfire cases and investigations, including a case in Sonoma County resulting in the dismissal of all criminal charges.
  • The California State Bar in an internal investigation of whistleblower claims that its CEO breached his fiduciary duties.
  • A technology company in an internal investigation of the potential use of competitor trade secrets.
  • A technology company in an internal investigation involving the potential embezzlement of company funds and a vendor kickback scheme.
  • A major mortgage company in a DOJ investigation of its disclosure and origination practices.

Publications

  • “Generative AI and Legal Aid: Results from a Field Study and 100 Use Cases to Bridge the Access to Justice Gap,” forthcoming in Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review, Vol. 57 (2024)
  • Co-Author, “How LLMs Can Help Address the Access to Justice Gap Through the Courts,” SSRN, January 4, 2024
  • “Strategies for Protecting Trade Secrets Amid Tech Layoffs,” Law360, February 2023

Speaking Engagements

  • “Generative AI: Where Are We and What Legal Challenges Await Us?,” Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference, July 2024 (forthcoming)
  • “Generative AI in the Legal Profession in the Courts,” California Bench Bar Coalition, June 2024 (forthcoming)
  • “Results from the First Field Study of AI for Legal Aid,” Talk Justice: An LSC Podcast, June 2024
  • “Pier to Pier Networking: Ethical Guidelines and Practical Advice On Artificial Intelligence,” California Bankruptcy Forum Annual Insolvency Conference, May 2024
  • “Trade Secrets Regulatory Session,” Trade Secrets IP Protection & Litigation West Coast Summit, April 2024
  • “Artificial Intelligence and Pro Bono,” OneJustice California Pro Bono Conference, January 2024 “Drafting an AI Policy: Ethical and Practical Issues,” OneJustice, December 2023
  • “AI and the Practice of Law,” Berkeley Stanford Advanced Patent Law Institute, December 2023
  • “Managing AI from a Legal Perspective: Contract and Litigation Skills,” Berkeley Law AI Institute, October 2023
  • “Generative AI: Your New Legal Assistant,” State Bar of California, October 2023
  • “Trade Secrets Theft: Civil Litigation,” Sandpiper Sixth Annual Trade Secrets Protection, Enforcement, and Litigation Conference, San Francisco, January 2023
  • “Strategies for Combating Implicit Bias,” Bar Association of San Francisco In-House Conference, January 2023 Hsu Untied Interview with Miriam Kim, December 2022
  • “Litigating Before Magistrate Judges in the Age of Zoom,” Federal Bar Association, September 2021
  • “Playing the Long Game: Building and Sustaining Genuine Professional Relationships,” California Minority Counsel Program, Women of Color Conference, May 2021
  • “An Arbitration Debate: ArbiGREAT? Or ArbiHATE?” Association of Business Trial Lawyers, March 2021 “Civil & Criminal Trade Secret Litigation Strategies,” Northern District Practice Program, February 2021
  • “Trial, Settlement, and Post-Judgment Oversight,” California Complex Civil Litigation Symposium, 2019
  • “Elimination of Bias in the Legal Profession and Society,” All Hands Meeting of the Silicon Valley Association of General Counsel, 2019
  • “Litigating and Defending Trade Secret & Employee Mobility Claims,” Bridgeport Trade Secret and Employee Mobility Conference, May 2018

Practice Areas

Industries

Education

  • UC Berkeley School of Law (J.D., 2002) Order of the Coif

  • Harvard University (A.B., magna cum laude, 1998)

Clerkships

  • Judge Levin H. Campbell, U.S. Court of Appeals, First Circuit, 2004-2005

Bar Admissions

  • California