Nathaniel R. Scharn is an associate in the Orange County office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher in the Litigation Department, specializing in intellectual property matters. Nathaniel has successfully represented clients through multiple jury trials, evidentiary merits hearings, and appeals. He has represented clients in the high tech, life sciences, medical device, and automotive industries in a wide range of matters, including patent infringement, copyright infringement, unfair competition and antitrust disputes, privacy law, breach of contract litigation, and licensing disputes.
Nathan was recently part of a trial team that obtained a directed verdict of noninfringement in a Western District of Texas litigation that involved three patents related to cloud computing networks. He has been recognized by Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America for Commercial Litigation (2021-2025), Litigation - Intellectual Property (2023-2025), and Appellate Practice (2025).
Prior to joining the firm, he served as a law clerk to The Honorable Janis L. Sammartino in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California and as an associate at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, P.C.
Nathaniel received his Juris Doctor summa cum laude in 2015 from University of San Diego School of Law, where he served as lead articles editor of the San Diego Law Review. While in law school, he clerked in the major frauds division of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California and served as a judicial extern to The Honorable Larry Alan Burns in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California and the Honorable M. Margaret McKeown in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. In 2010, Nathaniel graduated from Point Loma Nazarene University magna cum laude with a degree in journalism. Before attending law school, he worked as a journalist at a daily newspaper.
He is a member of the California Bar and is admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the Southern District of California, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
Capabilities
Credentials
Education:
- University of San Diego - 2015 Juris Doctor
- Point Loma Nazarene University - 2010 Bachelor of Arts
Admissions:
- California Bar
Clerkships:
- USDC, Southern District of California, Hon. Janis L. Sammartino, 2015 - 2016