+ Education
NYU School of Law, J.D., magna cum laude, 2002
University of Oklahoma, B.S., Electrical Engineering, with special distinction
+ Awards
L.A. Times B2B Publishing Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Accessibility Magazine, "DEIA Visionary" (2023)
Los Angeles and San Francisco Daily Journal, "Top 100 Lawyers" (2023)
Litigation Counsel of America and Diversity Law Institute, “Diversity Law Institute Diversity Award” (2023)
Los Angeles Business Journal, “Top 100 Lawyers” (2022-Present)
Best Lawyers in America, "Best Lawyer," "Commercial Litigation” and "Litigation - Intellectual Property"(2022-Present)
L.A. Times B2B Publishing Business of Law Magazine, “Visionary" (2021)
Los Angeles Business Journal, “Leaders of Influence: Thriving in Their 40s” (2021)
Los Angeles Business Journal, “Leaders of Influence: Litigators & Trial Attorneys” (2021)
Los Angeles and San Francisco Daily Journal, "Top Intellectual Property Lawyers" (2021)
Los Angeles Business Journal, "Minority Leaders of Influence: Attorneys" (2021, 2023)
Super Lawyers, "Top 100 Southern California Super Lawyers" (2023), "Super Lawyer" (2019-Present)
Benchmark Litigation, "Litigation Star" (2021-2024), "California Star" (2020), "Local Litigation Star" (2018 and 2019)
Latino Leaders Magazine, "Top Latino Lawyer" (2018)
Martindale-Hubbell, AV Preeminent
Litigation Counsel of America: The Trial Lawyer Honorary Society, Fellow
Daily Journal, "Top Verdicts of 2014" (2015)
Daily Journal, "Top 20 Lawyers Under 40" (2014)
The Recorder, "Lawyers on the Fast Track" (2012)
+ Speaking Engagements
Presenter, "Diversity, Equity & Inclusion: The Inconvenient Truths," The Litigation Counsel of America Spring Retreat (April 25, 2023)
Co-Presenter, "What In-House Attorneys Need to Know about the Attorney-Client Privilege and Dual Purpose Communications," ACC Southwest Ohio- "Just In Time CLE" virtual program (December 2, 2022)
Panelist, "Confronting Bullying & Bias in the Legal Profession," NAMWOLF Annual Meeting (September 19, 2022)
Presenter, “It’s Not Mythical After All: A Case Study of a Class Action Trial,” ACC Mountain West - Nutrition Law Symposium (September 9, 2022)
Presenter, “Pending Appellate Cases You Need to Know About,” ACC Southwest Ohio (June 28, 2022)
Presenter, "Fundamentals of Taking Depositions," Bridgeport Continuing Education, Mastering the Deposition Workshop (January 31, 2020)
Co-Presenter, "Size Doesn’t Matter: How Top Boutique Firms Are Winning Big Clients From Big Law," Logikcull 2019 Winter Semester Webinar Series (March 6, 2019)
Moderator, "MCCA's Blueprint for Buying & Selling - A Pitch Workshop for Outside & In-House Counsel," MCCA 2018 Creating Pathways to Diversity Conference (October 3, 2018)
Panelist, "Crazy Litigation Strategies That Just Might Work (and Tried and True Ones That Might Not)," HNBA 2018 Annual Convention (September 6, 2018)
Panelist, "Mastering Your Own Destiny and Stepping Out," HNBA 2018 Corporate Counsel Conference (March 17, 2018)
Moderator, "Mandating Diversity: The Inclusion Clause," MCCA 2017 Creating Pathways to Diversity Conference (October 3, 2017)
Panelist, "A Brave New World in IP," ACC Southwest Ohio Chapter CLE Presentation (September 25, 2017)
Panelist, "What is the Future of Class Action Litigation," HNBA 2017 Annual Convention (September 8, 2017)
Panelist, "Technology and the Trial," MCCA Global TEC Forum (October 2016)
Panelist, "Ten Tips to Reduce Your Litigation Spend," ACC South Florida Chapter's 6th Annual CLE Conference (September 30, 2016)
Moderator, "Don't Rain on My Parade: Negotiating Cloud Computing Agreements," NAMWOLF 2016 Annual Meeting (September 16, 2016)
Moderator, "General Counsel Panel," NAMWOLF 2016 Annual Meeting (September 16, 2016)
Panelist, "Best Friends? The Relationship Between In-house and Outside Counsel," HNBA 2016 Annual Convention (September 9, 2016)
Presenter, "Class Action Highlights 2015," ACC Southwest Ohio Chapter CLE Presentation (November 17, 2015)
Moderator, "General Counsel Panel," NAMWOLF 2015 Annual Meeting (September 2015)
Presenter, "Privacy and Data Breach Update," ILLS Meeting (November 2014)
Panelist, "Class Actions: Report from the Trenches," NAMWOLF 2014 Annual Meeting (September 2014)
Moderator, "Recent Developments in Patent Law," MCCA CLE Expo (March 2014)
+ Prior Affiliations
Willenken LLP, 2004-2019
Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP, 2002-04
+ Civic Involvement
City of Los Angeles, LAPD Police Permit Review Panel, Former Commissioner
City of Los Angeles, LAPD Police Permit Review Panel, Former Hearing Examiner
+ Admissions
Admitted in California, New York and Kentucky
Federal Courts:
United States Supreme Court
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
U.S. District Court for the Central, Northern, Southern and Eastern Districts of California
U.S. District Court for the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York
U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa
U.S. District Court for the Eastern and Western Districts of Kentucky
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan
U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska
U.S. District Court for the Eastern, Western, and Southern Districts of Texas
+ Professional Affiliations
American Bar Foundation, Fellow
Hispanic National Bar Association, Member
Cuban American Bar Association, Member
Association of Latino Professionals For America, Member
Litigation Counsel of America
Member, Trial Law Institute
Member, Diversity Law Institute
Barrister, Order of Veritas
Advocate, Order of Certus
National Association of Minority and Women Owned Law Firms, Vice Chair of Board (2017-2023)
Leadership Council on Legal Diversity, Fellow (2017)
+ Publications
Co-Author, “Why Bristol-Myers Applies to Class Actions,” Law360 (March 30, 2018)
Co-Author, “A Crash-Course in Data-Security Regulation and Litigation,” ACC Docket (September 2015)
+ Contact
wdelgado@dtolaw.com
Direct: (213) 335-7010
Connect with me: LinkedIn
A relentless litigator with an unmatched obsession for superior results, Will Delgado approaches litigation with a clear focus: win, as fast as possible. To do that, he dives into his client’s business so that he has a clear understanding of what matters, what doesn’t, what creates leverage, and what triggers a successful outcome. His strategy can be universally applied to all cases, which explains why he has had broad-ranging conversations with clients over the course of his career on subjects ranging from the proper use of blue agave for making tequila to the use of Bluetooth technology. Ultimately, he is retained time and again because, as one of his clients remarked, “I like you because you think like a business person, not a lawyer.”
In his 20 years of practice, Will has litigated and tried numerous cases ranging from straightforward commercial matters to complex patent cases. Currently, he focuses his practice on intellectual property and class action defense. Will’s practice is truly nationwide. He has litigated intellectual property claims in numerous district courts, including the Eastern District of Texas and the District of Delaware as well as appeared before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the International Trade Commission. He has also defended against threatened or actual class actions in various federal courts across the country, including those in California, Texas, Illinois, Florida, Michigan, New York, and New Jersey. To date, he has represented clients in over 115 intellectual property disputes in federal court alone and defended clients in over 95 threatened or filed class action matters.
Will’s list of impressive victories has earned him a series of accolades from notable media outlets throughout his career, including being named a “Top 100 Lawyer in Los Angeles,” a “Top 100: Super Lawyer in Southern California,” a “Top Intellectual Property Lawyer,” a “Top 20 Lawyer Under 40,” and a “Top Latino Lawyer.” He is a fellow of the American Bar Foundation (limited to one percent of lawyers licensed in each jurisdiction) and a Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America (comprised of less than one-half of one percent of American lawyers).
Will started out as an associate at Quinn Emanuel before moving to Willenken, a litigation boutique where he became a name partner. Having grown up in a Cuban household in Miami, Florida, Will is bilingual, a skill he utilizes when representing companies from Latin America and Spain. While he used to have hobbies that included playing tennis and fly fishing, most of Will’s free time is now consumed by coaching his two sons in various sports.