Deanna Kwong, Hewlett Packard Enterprise's senior IP litigation counsel, this year led her team and outside counsel to a summary judgment victory in a highly contentious competitor copyright case filed by Oracle, which had accused HPE of using stolen intellectual property in a scheme to win valuable customer service contracts. Kwong is among the 21 lawyers chosen by The Recorder as Women Leaders in Tech Law as part of this year's California Leaders in Tech Law and Innovation Awards.

The Recorder: What's your proudest professional achievement of the past year and why?

Deanna Kwong: My proudest professional achievement this past year is prevailing on summary judgment on all claims in an intellectual property case that I had been managing for many years. It was a competitor copyright lawsuit that was highly contentious. It was an incredibly complex case involving many different moving pieces. I am proud of this hard-fought outcome for those reasons. I am proud also to have assembled a diverse and collaborative team that worked exceptionally well together.

What's your proudest personal achievement of the past year and why?

Running is meditative for me. It also drives me to challenge myself. This year, just 12 days after I ran the Boston Marathon, I completed my longest ultramarathon to date: 64 miles, with approximately 15,000 feet of gain, through the heat-trapping canyons on the historic Western States trail. I ran from before sunrise to after sunset that day. I am proud that I sharpened my mental and physical toughness, and learned a lot about myself in the process.

What's one piece of advice you'd give to a woman starting out in tech law?

Don't forget the power of in-person interaction. The tech sector is fast-paced and obviously deeply linked to increasingly sophisticated and varied forms of digital communication that make it easier and easier to conduct business globally and remotely. Take the time and effort to also engage in face-to-face, in-person communication when possible. This can strengthen business connections and cultivate credibility in a way that remote communication cannot.

What concrete steps could be made to increase the number of women in tech law?

One step is to engage male allies to help drive gender equality in tech law. I helped to plan the ABA Commission on Women in the Profession's San Francisco-based "Men in the Mix" focus group Aug. 12, 2019, when many local tech law leaders came together to discuss how law firms and legal departments can engage male colleagues as partners to advance gender equality in the profession. Another step is for industrywide opportunities to formally recognize the many accomplishments of existing women leaders in tech law, much as The Recorder is doing now. Several studies have shown that female executives and leaders generally hesitate to self-promote, as compared to their male counterparts. And for those women in tech law who choose to have children, a third step is to offer flexible work schedules and work-from-home opportunities for those remaining in the workplace, as well as reentry into the workplace programs for those who choose to take a few years off to focus on raising their children.