Filing of Infringement Complaint Alone is Insufficient to Support Post-Filing Willful Infringement Claim

The court granted defendants' motion to dismiss plaintiff's willful infringement claims for failure to state a claim. "The absence of any allegation of pre-filing knowledge of the patents is fatal to [plaintiff's] willful infringement claims. . . . [Plaintiff] maintains that the filing of this suit provides sufficient notice to support post-filing willful infringement claims. The Court disagrees. . . . Absent additional allegations, the filing of an infringement suit alone is insufficient to give rise to a post-filing willful infringement claim. . . . To maintain willful infringement claims, Touchscreen must demonstrate that [defendants] knew about the patents and acted despite an objectively high likelihood that its actions constituted infringement of a valid patent."

Touchscreen Gestures, LLC v. Research In Motion Ltd., et. al., 6-12-cv-00263 (TXED March 27, 2013, Order) (Schneider, J.).