LJN Newsletters

It is a staple in virtually every patent case for defendants to assert defenses of non-infringement, invalidity, and inequitable conduct. While patent litigators appropriately focus on these traditional defenses, there are also nontraditional defenses — including lack of ownership of the patent-in-suit, judicial estoppel, and unclean hands — that may be incredibly beneficial to patent defendants.

By intelligently abandoning non-essential patents and trademarks and increasing revenue from IP sales, businesses can strengthen their balance sheets and increase competitiveness.

This article considers the unique aspects of clean technology and renewable energy against the backdrop of a rapidly changing patent law landscape. In particular, the article considers recent U.S. Supreme Court patent cases and how they may impact business decisions, development deals, and other transactional aspects of interest to those in the cleantech and renewable energy industry.

Highlights of the latest intellectual property news from around the country.

Due to its so-called "rocket docket," many patent litigants select the Eastern District of Texas when filing a lawsuit or a declaratory action. However, the Federal Circuit's recent decision in In re TS Tech may substantially curtail this practice.

In Acumed LLC v. Stryker Corp., the Federal Circuit affirmed the grant of a permanent injunction enjoining Stryker from making and selling a putatively infringing orthopedic nail product. In so deciding, the Federal Circuit declined to articulate a bright-line rule governing the grant of permanent injunctions in patent infringement actions. Nevertheless, the Acumed decision is instructive with respect to how the courts may apply the rule of eBay Inc. v. MercExchange, L.L.C. in patent infringement cases and the facts that may be adduced to secure — or defeat — the grant of injunctive relief.

Any way you look at it, e-communication gives you and your firm exposure in an existing or potential client market. Unlike other communication delivery methods, e-communication is the one place a law firm can actually see specific results ' from who received the communication, to whether that person actually viewed the e-mail or forwarded it on to someone else.

In 2004, the Sutherland law firm was dealing with a large enforcement matter that included scheduling many court dates. While working to effectively manage the many aspects involved in this unique case, we looked into using CompuLaw Vision, which draws on CompuLaw's vast databases of court rules and jurisdictions and automatically calculates deadlines, saving time and reducing the risk of error.