Litigation “Full of Sound and Fury, Signifying Nothing”

As you may have read in last week’s Wall Street Journal, judicial lion Richard Posner of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, sitting by designation in the Northern District of Illinois, threw out what promised to be another titanic smart phone battle between Apple and Google–owned Motorola Mobility.

The short two–page order (accessible through the WSJ article) explains that the case was tentatively tossed because neither side could show any harm from the alleged infringement. While brief, Judge Posner promises a more detailed opinion to follow. Given his recent post about the current “dysfunctional patent system,” the opinion should be an interesting—and potentially ground–breaking—analysis of contemporary patent litigation. We at IP Wise look forward to the upcoming opinion, and anticipate a thoughtful perspective on the increasing use (and misuse) of patent litigation as a business strategy.

Posted by Stacy Stitham