Damages For Infringement of Independent Claim Do Not Serve As Cap On Damages For Infringement of Dependent Claim

The court denied defendant's motion in limine to exclude the value of certain components from the royalty base because "the damages that are awarded from infringement of a dependent claim cannot exceed those that are awarded from infringement of the independent claim from which it is derived.” “In support of its proposition, [defendant] cites only a footnote from Wahpeton Canvas Co. v. Frontier, Inc., 870 F.2d 1546, 1553 n.10 (Fed. Cir. 1989). This Court will decline [defendant's] invitation to extend the dicta in Wahpeton into the promulgation of a rule of law by the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit."

University of Pittsburgh v. Varian Medical Systems, Inc., 2-08-cv-01307 (PAWD February 10, 2012, Order) (Schwab, J.)