Dispute Between Defendants Concerning Alleged Breach of Fiduciary Duty Did Not Establish Direction or Control Required for a Finding of Joint Infringe

Defendant's post-trial motion for judgment as a matter of law of no joint infringement was granted. "[Another defendant] accused [the moving defendant] of breach of fiduciary duty because [the other defendant] believed that [moving defendant] owed it a duty of loyalty and candor. [Plaintiff] argues this was evidence the jury could rely on to find more than a mere arms-length transaction between the parties. However, this is not evidence of any actual direction or control. The fact that [the other defendant] at one time had a claim against [this defendant] for what it thought was a breach of some fiduciary duty is not sufficient to show that there was one."

Golden Hour Data Systems, Inc. v. emsCharts, Inc., 2-06-cv-00381 (TXED April 3, 2009, Memorandum and Opinion)