Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati has hired patent litigation partner Yitai Hu from Alston & Bird.

Hu focuses on intellectual property litigation work. Fluent in Mandarin, he helps China-based manufacturers and technology companies defend claims before U.S. courts and the U.S. International Trade Commission. Companies he has represented include Taiwanese semiconductor company ELAN Microelectronics Corp. and Chinese home appliance maker Haier Group Corp.

He will work primarily out of Wilson Sonsini's Palo Alto office but also will spend time in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong.

Hu joined Alston & Bird in 2008 from Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, bringing with him a 10-lawyer team to open its Silicon Valley office. In 2015, he helped open the Atlanta-based firm's Beijing office and served as the office chief representative; IP partner Helen Su succeeded Hu as the Beijing office chief representative.

Earlier in his career, Hu was a partner at legacy Shaw Pittman and Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner.

“We're seeing increasing demand for patent litigation experience, and a steady rise in cases involving China-based clients,” Wilson Sonsini managing partner Doug Clark said in a statement about Hu's appointment.

The U.S. Department of Justice has recently ramped up the prosecution of Chinese companies and individuals on the intellectual property and cybersecurity fronts as the world's two economic powerhouses remain locked in a trade dispute.

Over the past few weeks, the DOJ indicted Chinese government intelligent officers and hackers for allegedly stealing trade secrets, and also charged a government-controlled company in China with stealing trade secrets from Idaho-based Micron Technology Inc.

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