Leveraging Rule 68 Offers of Judgment in Settlement Negotiations
Inducing Favorable Settlements, Avoiding Potential Pitfalls, Shifting Attorneys' Fees
Recording of a 90-minute CLE webinar with Q&A
This CLE webinar will analyze Rule 68 offers of judgment and how they may induce settlement. The program will discuss the mechanics of the rule, strategic considerations defendants must consider in light of the consequences of making the offer, and factors for plaintiffs to contemplate in considering rejecting the offer. The panel will provide updates on the legacy of Campbell-Ewald Co. v. Gomez, in which the U.S. Supreme Court held that an unaccepted settlement offer or offer of judgment does not moot a plaintiff's case.
Outline
- Analysis of FRCP Rule 68 offers of judgment
- Negotiating strategies and tactics
- Taxable costs, attorney fees, and interest
- Jurisdictional differences
- Use in class action litigation post Campbell-Ewald Co. v. Gomez
Benefits
The panel will review these and other key issues:
- Strategic advantages of a Rule 68 offer of judgment for defendants
- Best practices for drafting effective offers of judgment
- Plaintiff considerations when accepting or rejecting an offer of judgment
- The impact of the Supreme Court's ruling in Campbell-Ewald Co. v. Gomez
- Lessons from recent cases involving Rule 68
Faculty

Charles Duncan
Senior Attorney
Robert Bosch
Mr. Duncan is a Senior Patent Litigation Attorney with Robert Bosch LLC in Farmington Hills, Michigan. After graduating... | Read More
Mr. Duncan is a Senior Patent Litigation Attorney with Robert Bosch LLC in Farmington Hills, Michigan. After graduating from the University of Michigan Law School in 2009, he started his career in the IP Litigation department of Kirkland & Ellis LLP in Chicago. In 2011, Mr. Duncan moved back to his hometown of Metro Detroit and joined the IP Litigation department of Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn LLP. In 2016, he transitioned to an in-house role with Robert Bosch LLC. Prior to attending law school, Mr. Duncan studied electrical engineering at the University of Michigan College of Engineering and worked as a digital hardware engineer at National Instruments in Austin, Texas.
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Lionel M. Lavenue
Partner
Finnegan Henderson Farabow Garrett & Dunner
Mr. Lavenue’s practice focuses on patent trial litigation, including 19 bench or jury trials, and on creating and... | Read More
Mr. Lavenue’s practice focuses on patent trial litigation, including 19 bench or jury trials, and on creating and managing large patent portfolios. With experience in almost 200 patent cases, he has managed or served as first chair in numerous district court litigations, including more than 60 cases in the E.D. Texas, almost a dozen patent infringement cases and/or matters under Section 1498(a) in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, more than a dozen disputes under Section 337 before the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), and multiple arbitrations.
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Sarah Taylor
Chief Litigation Counsel
Robert Bosch
Ms. Taylor is Chief Litigation Counsel, Intellectual Property with Robert Bosch LLC in Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois,... | Read More
Ms. Taylor is Chief Litigation Counsel, Intellectual Property with Robert Bosch LLC in Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois, responsible for managing intellectual property litigation, brand protection, and trademark law. Prior to joining Bosch in 2005, she was an associate, then partner, with Roper & Quigg from 1993 to 2003 (the firm later merged into Jenner & Block) and a member at Bell, Boyd & Lloyd from 2003-2005 (the firm later merged into K&L Gates) focusing on patent litigation. Ms. Taylor received a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign and a J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley.
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