Evolving State of § 101 Law Weighs Against Award of Attorney Fees Under § 285

Following summary judgment of invalidity for lack of patentable subject matter, the court denied defendant's motion for attorney fees under 35 U.S.C. § 285 because plaintiff's litigation positions were not baseless. "[D]efendant focuses on the very invalidity arguments presented in the summary judgment briefing. The court expended considerable effort in reaching its invalidity determination and analyzed those very arguments in its opinion. Defendant's characterization of plaintiff's arguments as 'reckless' and its claims as 'clearly invalid' is in contradiction to the court's position that the § 101 analysis is an evolving state of the law and a difficult exercise, which does not lend itself to, e.g., shifting fees pursuant to 35 U.S.C. § 285."

YYZ LLC v. Pegasystems Inc., 1-13-cv-00581 (DED May 2, 2016, Order) (Robinson, J.)