Small Change

We end a quiet week with a quick word on a short order from Judge Gilstrap of the Eastern District of Texas in the case of Tivo v. Verizon Communications. Under the new regime inaugurated by the America Invents Act, patent–owners cannot name unrelated alleged infringers in the same case just because they believe those alleged infringers all infringe the same patent. That rule has turned single multi–defendant cases into multiple single–defendant cases, which in turn are more likely to be transferred to disparate district courts throughout the country where the alleged infringers (and their allegedly infringing systems) can be found. That outcome, in turn, increases the likelihood of multiple courts adjudicating cases brought under the same patent at the same time. Which brings us back to Tivo, in which Judge Gilstrap dismissed claims asserted by the patent–owner based on a patent recently ruled invalid by a district court in Virginia. To avoid inconsistent rulings and to promote judicial economy, the judge put the Texas case on ice while the Virginia case made its way to the Federal Circuit on appeal, quietly demonstrating that the adjudication of cases under the same patent against multiple accused infringers in different federal fora need not lead to chaos.

Tivo (ED Tex Apr 25, 2012)

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Posted by David Swetnam-Burland