No. Absolutely do not act as your own patent lawyer - ever - especially in litigation. It is correctly considered an arcane and difficult field even by other lawyers.
The ability to sue is not the same as suing. Simply the threat of a lawsuit is enough to discourage some transactions. That's the point.
In my case, I used a hybrid approach: I studied the law, drew up a response, and then hired a lawyer at $900/hour (as he was a law professor) to put out a response though his firm. By understanding the basics, I could hypothesize a response, on my own time, and then verify that hypothesis with an expert.
[update]
Actually, I just re-read my above post, and didn't make the point very well. Thanks for pointing that out.
In my case, I used a hybrid approach: I studied the law, drew up a response, and then hired a lawyer at $900/hour (as he was a law professor) to put out a response though his firm. By understanding the basics, I could hypothesize a response, on my own time, and then verify that hypothesis with an expert.
[update]
Actually, I just re-read my above post, and didn't make the point very well. Thanks for pointing that out.