Brief: Bill Lee, lawyer who represented Broadcom, will represent Apple in case against Nokia

Law.com posted something that probably very few IntoMobile readers care about, but I’ll share it none the less:

In Nokia (NYSE: NOK)’s big patent showdown with Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) over iPhone technology, it will be Alston & Bird versus Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr. Wilmer’s co-managing partner Bill Lee made an appearance for Apple on Tuesday in a stipulation filed in Delaware federal district court.

There may be no lawyer in America more familiar with the technology behind smart phones than Lee. For years, he represented Broadcom (NSDQ: BRCM) in its battles with Qualcomm (NSDQ: QCOM) over phone patents. That litigation ended in April when Qualcomm agreed to pay Broadcom $891 million.

When Nokia filed its suit alleging infringement of ten patents, we noted the conspicuous absence of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges. The firm had been inseparable from Nokia through its global war against Qualcomm, which ended on the steps of Delaware Chancery Court last year. As we reported, Alston & Bird has done quite a bit of litigating for Nokia as well.

The same is true of Wilmer for Apple, though this appears to be the highest-profile case Bill Lee & Co. have taken on for Apple. According to the stipulation both parties agreed to, Apple has until December 14 to respond to Nokia’s complaint. Some observers are expecting that answer will include a countersuit.

For those who are not aware of what’s going on, Nokia sued Apple for violating 10 wireless patents. Nilay Patel from Engadget did a fantastic job at covering the details of the case, it’s consequences, and likely results. Expect to be reading about Apple vs. Nokia for at least a year, probably two. Things like this never end as fast as you’d like them to, and the results are never what you expect. At the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter. You’ll keep on buying the latest iPhones or Nokia smartphones.