Patent Law

Foley & Lardner Reaches Tentative Deal to Settle Patent Malpractice Suit

Foley & Lardner has reached a tentative agreement to settle a malpractice suit that contends the law firm missed a deadline for an international patent application. The terms of the deal are confidential, the National Law Journal reports. The suit filed by biotech company Vaxiion Therapeutics Inc. had claimed Foley…

Jun 2, 2009 4:19 PM CDT

High Court to Hear Bilski Case Restricting Business Method Patents

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to review a decision that restricts patents on business methods by requiring that they be tied to a machine or involve a physical transformation. The outcome will likely affect software, biotechnology and financial services industries, Bloomberg reports. “This case raises the most fundamental question…

Jun 1, 2009 4:43 PM CDT

Judge Says HP Lawyers Didn’t Go Beyond ‘Bounds of Civility’

A federal judge has refused to order lawyers for Hewlett-Packard Co. to pay about $12 million in attorney fees in a hard-fought patent infringement case. Judge Randall Rader wrote that some HP lawyers “did employ some marginally vexatious litigation tactics,” but the conduct did not warrant the fee sanction, the…

May 22, 2009 2:31 PM CDT

ACLU Suit Challenges Patents on Genes as First Amendment Violation

A suit filed by in New York federal court challenges patents granted to a company for two genes that can be tested to determine a person’s increased risk of breast and ovarian cancers. The suit argues such patents impede the free flow of information and violate the First Amendment, according…

May 13, 2009 7:01 PM CDT

Akin Gump Hit with $72.6M Malpractice Verdict

Updated: Jurors in a San Antonio federal trial have awarded plaintiffs $72.6 million in a malpractice case against Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld. The firm plans to appeal. And in a statement released to the ABA Journal late this evening, Akin Gump says, it “is disappointed with the verdict,…

May 8, 2009 5:59 PM CDT

Lawyers Say Embarrassing Voice Mail of Marvell GC May Have Been Edited

A voice mail message by lawyers on a speakerphone that didn’t get disconnected before some embarrassing discussions took place is being challenged by a company that wants to keep the recording out of an upcoming trade secrets trial. Lawyers for Marvell Semiconductor say the tape should be tossed because it…

May 7, 2009 12:05 PM CDT

Wham-Owed

If you think that all kids want these days is a Wii, a Nintendo DS or the latest PlayStation, then a series of recent lawsuits may make you think twice.

May 2, 2009 3:30 AM CDT

Intellectual Property Boutique Is Hot for New Recruits

The last time patent litigator Bert Ehrlich experienced a downturn in the economy, his law firm missed the boat. Not this time. Ehrlich, a partner at the intellectual property boutique Ladas & Parry, sees his firm as a beacon of hope to disgruntled BigLaw partners and associates. Business at Ladas…

Apr 28, 2009 5:31 PM CDT

Barnes Firm Raids Bryan Cave to Open Atlanta Office, Plans More Hiring

A more than 500-attorney Indianapolis-based law firm is opening its first office in the Southeast, raiding two partners from the Atlanta office of Bryan Cave Powell Goldstein to establish a foothold in the city. Although Barnes & Thornburg is opening its Atlanta outpost with Stuart Johnson and Jason Bernstein, it…

Apr 6, 2009 9:43 PM CDT

Ex-Client Seeks $10M Legal Fees Clawback Over Ill-Fated Patent Litigation

A former client is suing two law firms in an effort to recapture some $10 million in legal fees and costs from ill-fated patent infringement litigation. E-Pass Technologies is asserting negligent misrepresentation claims against the company’s former counsel in its California lawsuit, reports the Recorder. The defendants are New York…

Mar 24, 2009 6:36 PM CDT

A Peek Inside Government Secrecy

It comes as no surprise to most that secrecy in government has been on the rise in recent years, but the amount of that secrecy may still stun you.

Mar 2, 2009 4:00 AM CST

Tool against ‘trolls’

Bothered by “patent trolls,” those pesky creatures who wait for inventions to hit the market and then cry, “I’ve got your patent; now pay me”? John Amster says he has a solution.

Mar 2, 2009 3:00 AM CST

Fish & Richardson Accused of Dropping Then Suing Client, Quickly

A former Fish & Richardson client says the law firm dumped it as a client, then turned around the next day and sued it for patent infringement on behalf of a rival company. Aliph Inc., which makes Bluetooth headsets, is seeking to disqualify the law firm, the Recorder reports. Aliph…

Feb 25, 2009 3:55 PM CST

Legal: Speedo LZR Racer; Not: Alleged Target Version of ‘Foxers’ Line?

In the hotly contested world of competitive sports, high-tech materials and innovative designs can shave critical seconds off an athlete’s time. So use of certain equipment, such as the Speedo LZR Racer suit many consider state-of-the-art, has been hotly debated in the governing bodies of various sports, and even the…

Feb 21, 2009 1:24 AM CST

Microsoft Obtains 10,000th Patent

Microsoft now holds 10,000 U.S. patents, a milestone the company attributes to an effort to maximize the value of its research and development. “We feel that patents are the currency of innovation,” Microsoft’s chief patent counsel, Bart Eppenauer, told Managing Intellectual Property. Microsoft does not hold the record for U.S.…

Feb 18, 2009 5:17 PM CST