Prof. Sam Malek
Dr. Sam Malek is a Software Engineering Professor at UC Irvine’s School of Information and Computer Sciences, where he directs the Institute for Software Research and Software Engineering and Analysis Laboratory.
His research spans software design and architecture, distributed and embedded systems, mobile computing, web technologies, and software security. With 140+ peer-reviewed publications cited over 12,000 times (Google Scholar), Prof. Malek ranks in the top 0.05% of scholars worldwide in software systems research according to ScholarGPS. His notable awards include the ACM Distinguished Paper Award (2025), ACM SIGSOFT Test-of-Time Award (2020) and NSF CAREER Award (2013).
Prof. Malek teaches undergraduate and graduate computer science courses while maintaining an active research program. Software systems from his lab have been adopted by major organizations including Boeing, Bosch, NASA, DHS, and FBI. He has delivered 50+ conference presentations and served as organizer/reviewer for 150+ scientific conferences.
Currently, he serves on the editorial boards of ACM Transactions on Software Engineering and Methodology, ACM Transactions on Autonomous and Adaptive Systems, and Springer Journal of Computing. He is a member of ACM, ACM SIGSOFT, and IEEE.
Formal Education
PhD, Computer Science, University of Southern California, 2007
MS, Computer Science, University of Southern California, 2004
BS, Information and Computer Science, University of California, Irvine, 2000
Industry Experience
Prior to his academic appointment, Prof. Malek worked for several years as a software engineer, software architect, and programmer at a variety of companies, namely the Boeing Company, PricewaterhouseCoopers Consulting (later acquired by International Business Machines (IBM) Corporation), FieldCentrix, and Neural Computing Systems Lab. During his tenure in the industry, he gained professional experience in the design, development, and management of large-scale software engineering efforts. These efforts involved the engineering of a variety of enterprise automation, ecommerce, mobile, web-based, and data-driven software systems. The majority of his experiences as a practitioner in the industry dealt with the development of advanced software capabilities. Among others, at Boeing, he was one of the software architects in the Future Combat Systems project. This project pioneered the development of numerous autonomous aerial vehicles, nowadays commonly referred to as drones.
Litigation Experience
In his capacity as an expert witness in more than 90 cases, Prof. Malek has come across and testified about a broad range of software technologies. He has extensive experience with intellectual property cases involving patent, trade secret, and copyright law. He has drafted validity, invalidity, infringement, and non-infrignement reports, summarizing his opinions in these matters. He also has extensive experience with breach of contract disputes, often involving software development projects. He has testified in high-stakes jury trials in various US district courts. He has submitted declarations and offered deposition testimony to the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) in the Inter Partes Review (IPR) of patents. In providing testimony at trial, he draws on his teaching skills as an instructor to breakdown complex technical concepts in ways that can be explained to non-technical jurors. He also make frequent use of analogies and demonstratives to explain the technical concepts in an intuitive manner. References from attorneys in prior cases can be provided upon request.
Highlights
- Professor of Software Engineering, University of California
- 25+ years of experience in academia and industry
- 90+ prior software-related litigation matters
- 70+ prior testimonies in trials and depositions
- Author of 140+ peer-reviewed publications
- Test of Time Award from Association for Computing Machinery
- CAREER Award from National Science Foundation
- Artificial Intelligence
- Computers
- Cybercrime
- Cybersecurity
- Information Technology
- Intellectual Property
- Internet
- Patents
- Software
- Software Engineering
- Technology
- Trade Secrets
- User Interface
- Virtual Reality
- Q: Please list your professional accreditations, degrees, licenses, and certificates granted:
- A: PhD in Computer Science, University of Southern California
MS in Computer Science, University of Southern California
BS in Information and Computer Science, University of California Irvine - Q: Please list your affiliations or memberships in any professional and/or industry organizations:
- A: Member of the Software Engineering Faculty at the University of California, Irvine
Member of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)
Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
Editorial board of the ACM Transactions on Software Engineering and Methodology
Editorial board of the ACM Transactions on Autonomous and Adaptive Systems
Editorial Board of the Springer Journal of Computing - Q: Please list any teaching or speaking experience you have had, including subject matter:
- A: I am a Tenured Professor of Software Engineering at the University of California, Irvine. I regularly teach courses at all levels at the University. I have given over 50 formal presentations at scientific conferences of software engineering academics and professionals. I have served as organizer and reviewer of more than 150 scientific conferences.
- Q: Have any of your accreditations ever been investigated, suspended or removed? (if yes, explain)
- A: None
- Q: On how many occasions have you been retained as an expert?
- A: 70+ litigation matters. See my CV for the list of prior cases.
- Q: For what area(s) of expertise have you been retained as an expert?
- A: Software Engineering, Computer Science, Information Technology
- Q: In what percentage of your cases were you retained by the plaintiff?
- A: Approximately half
- Q: In what percentage of your cases were you retained by the defendant?
- A: Approximately half
- Q: On how many occasions have you had your deposition taken?
- A: More than 50 prior deposition testimonies.
- Q: When was the last time you had your deposition taken?
- A: Last month.
- Q: On how many occasions have you been qualified by a court to give expert testimony?
- A: Over 10 times.
- Q: On how many occasions have you testified as an expert in court or before an arbitrator?
- A: Over 10 times.
- Q: For how many years have you worked with the legal industry as an expert?
- A: Over 10 years.
- Q: What services do you offer? (E.g.: consulting, testing, reports, site inspections etc.)
- A: Expert Witness Consulting Services
- Q: What is your hourly rate to consult with an attorney?
- A: Available upon request.
- Q: What is your hourly rate to review documents?
- A: Available upon request.
- Q: What is your hourly rate to provide deposition testimony?
- A: Available upon request.
- Q: What is your hourly rate to provide testimony at trial?
- A: Available upon request.
- Q: Please list any fees other than those stated above (E.g.: travel expenses, copy fees, etc.)
- A: Available upon request.
Available Upon Request