SCOTUS considers limits on software patents; will case affect patent trolls?

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday considered what kind of software is eligible for a patent in a dispute over a computerized escrow mechanism. Several justices appeared unimpressed with the patents held by the Alice Corp., report the New York Times, the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times. A…

Apr 1, 2014 2:04 PM CDT

Patent theft suit blames former McDermott partner; defense sees ‘smoke and mirrors’

A former partner at McDermott Will & Emery is being accused of helping two of his family members steal a patent in a civil case that bases the allegations on circumstantial evidence. Representing the plaintiff medical-testing company, Theranos, is David Boies, who said in opening arguments this week that the…

Mar 14, 2014 2:32 PM CDT

Judge sanctions Samsung and counsel over release of confidential info in big-bucks Apple patent suit

Saying that a major law firm handled proprietary information covered by a confidentiality order in big-bucks patent litigation over smartphone technology as if it were “a trapeze artist flying high without a net,” a federal magistrate judge in California has imposed sanctions on Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan and its…

Jan 31, 2014 5:30 PM CST

Steptoe opens office in Silicon Valley

Two intellectual property partners from King & Spalding will staff a new Palo Alto, Calif., office of Steptoe & Johnson, and patent litigator William F. Abrams will serve as its managing partner, the San Francisco Business Times reports. Sanjeet Dutta is the other new partner. A King & Spalding press…

Jan 30, 2014 4:35 PM CST

Online yoga provider’s patent application causes stir in otherwise tranquil crowd

Jan 1, 2014 10:40 AM CST

SCOTUS to review standard for software patents

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed on Friday to consider the standard for software patents. The court will review a fractured en banc decision by U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit that did not produce agreement on the test to determine patent eligibility, report The BLT: The Blog of…

Dec 9, 2013 3:01 PM CST

Hearsay: December 2013

Dec 1, 2013 10:10 AM CST

Apple awarded $290M in Samsung infringement-damages retrial; a ‘speed bump’ on the way to appeal?

A federal jury in California awarded Apple $290 million on Thursday in a damages retrial for Samsung’s infringement of five patents, bringing Apple’s total award in the case to $930 million. The new award is closer to the $380 million sought by Apple than the $52 million figure suggested by…

Nov 22, 2013 2:55 PM CST

Apple lawyer was ‘appealing to race’ in TV recollections, Samsung says in failed bid for mistrial

A Samsung lawyer was unable to persuade U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh on Tuesday that she should declare a mistrial because of remarks by Apple’s attorney during closing arguments in the patent infringement damages retrial. Samsung lawyer Bill Price argued the remarks by his opponent were “appealing to race” and…

Nov 20, 2013 1:39 PM CST

Judge mulls possible sanctions for Samsung and counsel over Apple info disclosure

A federal magistrate judge in California is mulling potential sanctions against Samsung Electronics and its counsel over the possible violation of a protective order concerning discovery in a hard-fought, big-bucks patent-infringement case. Apple provided confidential information to Samsung’s law firm, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, which was supposed to be…

Nov 11, 2013 9:30 PM CST

Shook Hardy to open Seattle office with former Microsoft chief patent counsel

Shook Hardy & Bacon has announced that the law firm is bringing in the former chief patent counsel at Microsoft Corp. to head a new office in Seattle. Bart Eppenauer worked as a Shook Hardy associate for several years before joining Microsoft in 1997. He is expected to be the…

Nov 6, 2013 11:55 PM CST

What the Dixie Chicks and Robin Thicke know about fixing the patent system

If you want to reform the patent system, you should look to some ideas expressed in popular song, according to a federal appeals court judge. The system would work better if the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit didn’t have exclusive jurisdiction in patent cases, according to Judge…

Oct 8, 2013 12:43 PM CDT

Can patent trolling be thwarted by award of attorney fees? SCOTUS accepts two cases on fee issue

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed on Tuesday to hear two cases on the award of attorney fees in patent cases, including one cast as an avenue to deter frivolous litigation by patent trolls. The cases give the Supreme Court a chance to decide what constitutes an “exceptional case” meriting an…

Oct 2, 2013 4:07 PM CDT

Federal judge OKs injunction against AG who nixed law firm’s ‘patent troll’ work

The attorney general of Nebraska violated a Florida-based technology company’s legal rights by issuing a cease-and-desist order that precluded a Texas law firm accused of patent trolling from continuing to represent Activision TV in intellectual property cases, a federal judge in Omaha has ruled. In a Monday decision (PDF), U.S.…

Oct 2, 2013 4:00 PM CDT

Federal judges increasingly tap special masters to handle pretrial morass in complex cases

It’s not just law firms that are outsourcing some of their work. Overburdened federal judges are increasingly appointing special masters to help with the pretrial work in complex cases. The Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) has a story on the trend. Though there is “scant” data on the exact number…

Sep 30, 2013 6:27 PM CDT