Two different district judges have dismissed the same patent plaintiff’s complaint (with leave to amend) where the complaint failed to identify accused products or link them to patent claims. PB&J Software, LLC v. BackupAgent B.V., No. 4:12CV691 CDP (E.D. Mo. Oct. 15, 2012). The court first explained that, as the Federal Circuit set forth in […]
Archive | October, 2012
Path Cleared for Ninth Circuit to Address Copyright First Sale Doctrine Burdens of Proof
Adobe has been granted partial judgment under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 54(b) in a copyright infringement case so that the Ninth Circuit may determine which party bears the burden of proof when the first sale doctrine is raised as a defense to copyright infringement. Adobe Systems, Inc. v. Christenson, No. 2:10-CV-00422-LRH-GWF (D. Nev. Oct. […]
Hi-Jacked LinkedIn Account Doesn’t Cause “Loss” Under the CFAA
A plaintiff’s claim under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, 18 U.S.C. §§ 1030(a)(2)(C) and 1030(a)(5)(C), based on her ex-employer’s alleged hi-jacking of her LinkedIn account, has failed to survive the defendant’s motion for summary judgment because the plaintiff failed to show a “loss” under the CFAA. Eagle v. Morgan, No. 11-4303 (E.D. Pa. Oct. […]
Breach of Duty to Offer RAND Licensing Terms?
By Charles Bieneman on October 14, 2012 in Licensing, Software Patents, Standard Setting Organizations
A lawsuit brought against a patent owner based on an alleged failure to offer a patent license on reasonable and nondiscriminatory (RAND) terms has largely survived the patent owner’s motion to dismiss. Realtek Semiconductor Corp. v. LSI Corp., No. C-12-03451 RMW (N.D. Cal. Oct. 10, 2012). The defendants, who contended that the patents at issue […]
En Banc Fed. Cir. To Reconsider Computer-Implemented Inventions
Vacating a 2-1 panel decision that had held software-implemented business method claims patentable, the Federal Circuit has now ordered an en banc rehearing of the patent owner’s appeal of the district court’s judgment that patent claims were invalid. In its order in CLS Bank Int’l. v. Alice Corp., No. 2011-1301 (Fed. Cir. October 9, 2012), the Court […]
Estoppel and Inter Partes Review of Patent Validity
By Charles Bieneman on October 8, 2012 in Post Grant Review / Re-examination of Patents, Uncategorized
Do the estoppel provisions of the inter partes re-examination statute preclude a third party from relying on prior art in litigation where, after the third party has included the prior art in its request for inter partes re-examination, the USPTO has determined that the prior art does not present a substantial new question of patentability? […]
E.D. Texas Awards Enhanced Damages for Willful Infringement
Listing an infringed patent in two contracts, and the apparent awareness of a Citrix executive of the patent, was enough to justify a finding of willfulness and enhanced damages against Citrix. SSL Services, LLC v. Citrix Systems, Inc., No. 2:08-cv-158-JRG (E.D. Tex. Sept. 17, 2012). Before the jury was charged, the court had issued a […]