Plaintiff's Pattern of Filing Serial Litigation and Voluntarily Dismissing Cases Involving § 101 Challenge Justifies Award of Attorney Fees​

Following a dismissal and covenant not to sue while defendant's 35 U.S.C. § 101 motion was pending, the court granted defendant's motion for attorney fees under 35 U.S.C. § 285 because plaintiff's litigation tactics were unreasonable. "Although the Court agrees that filing a large number of cases does not necessarily mean Plaintiff litigated in an unreasonable manner, it nevertheless finds troubling that Plaintiff has repeatedly dismissed its own lawsuits to evade a ruling on the merits and yet persists in filing new lawsuits advancing the same claims. Specifically, Plaintiff has filed similar lawsuits (more than 90 for [two patents-in-suit] and more than 400 for [another patent]) against countless defendants. Patent litigation is expensive, so it is unsurprising that the vast majority of accused infringers choose to settle early rather than expend the resources required to show a court that the Patents-in-Suit fail under § 101. When the few challenges do occur, however, they are promptly met with voluntary dismissals with prejudice, as in this case. . . . [T]he Court finds a clear pattern of serial filings with the goal of obtaining quick settlements at a price lower than the cost of litigation and the intent to litigate even when Plaintiff should have realized it had a weak litigation position."

Shipping and Transit, LLC v. Hall Enterprises, Inc., 2-16-cv-06535 (CACD July 5, 2017, Order) (Guilford, USDJ)

Defendants' Ongoing Participation in Litigation Process Waives Venue Objection​

Following the Supreme Court decision in TC Heartland LLC v. Kraft Foods Group Brands LLC, 137 S. Ct. 1514 (2017), the magistrate judge recommended denying defendants' motion to dismiss plaintiffs' patent infringement action for improper venue because defendants waived the issue through their litigation conduct. "[N]ot only was Defendants’ venue challenge belatedly made, during the time at which [defendant] repeatedly admitted venue was proper, the Court had conducted lengthy proceedings on Plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction and granted the preliminary injunction. Throughout those injunction proceedings, [defendant] never once challenged venue. Since that time, the Court has conducted numerous additional proceedings, including claim construction proceedings, contempt proceedings, several discovery related motions, and pretrial motions. [Defendant] consented to all of these proceedings without objecting to venue. Accordingly, even if [defendant's] defense had not been waived under Rule 12, which it has, [its] continuous and consistent conduct in this action constitutes waiver."

Tinnus Enterprises, LLC et al v. Telebrands Corporation et al, 6-15-cv-00551 (TXED July 5, 2017, Order) (Love, MJ)

Defendants' Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings Under 35 U.S.C. § 101 Waives Venue Objection

Following the Supreme Court decision in TC Heartland LLC v. Kraft Foods Grp. Brands LLC, 137 S. Ct. 1514 (2017), the court denied defendants' motion to dismiss plaintiff's patent infringement action for improper venue because defendants waived their initial venue challenge through their litigation activity, particularly by seeking to invalidate the patent-in-suit under 35 U.S.C. § 101. "Defendants denied that venue was proper in this District in their answer. . . . Nevertheless, 'merely filing an initial venue objection does not preclude subsequent waiver of the objection.'. . . Defendants have litigated the consolidated action in this Court for approximately a year, including by serving invalidity contentions, filing two motions to stay, filing a motion for judgment on the pleadings, and participating in claim construction. . . . The Court finds particularly important the fact that Defendants filed a motion for judgment on the pleadings seeking to invalidate the [patent] under 35 U.S.C. § 101. . . . [F]iling a motion for judgment on the pleadings on the issue of invalidity prior to filing a motion to dismiss for improper venue 'constitutes a tacit admission on the part of the movant that the court has personal jurisdiction, that venue is properly laid there, and that the court should dispose of the case on its merits.'"

InfoGation Corp. v. HTC Corporation et al, 3-16-cv-01902 (CASD July 5, 2017, Order) (Huff, USDJ)

Multimedia Network System Patent Invalid Under 35 U.S.C. § 101​

The court granted defendant's motion to dismiss because the asserted claims of plaintiff’s multimedia network system patent encompassed unpatentable subject matter and found that the claims lacked an inventive concept. "Considered individually, each step in the [patent] is well-understood, routine, and conventional. For instance, it is nothing new for servers and clients to send requests to each other. Similarly, it is not inventive to require authentications to access content. Nor is it any more inventive to incorporate asymmetric/public-key encryption into an authentication system. . . . The only possible 'non-conventional and non-generic arrangement' in the [patent] is the combination of asymmetric encryption with content licenses. But combining those two concepts is not new. Indeed, the [patent] references two earlier patents that both consider combining asymmetric encryption with licenses to enforce usage restrictions."

Digital Media Technologies, Inc. v. Amazon.com, Inc., 4-16-cv-00244 (FLND July 3, 2017, Order) (Walker, USDJ)

Broad Venue Discovery Authorized to Determine Existence of Regular and Established Place of Business

​ Following the Supreme Court decision in TC Heartland LLC v. Kraft Foods Group Brands, LLC, (2017), the court partially granted plaintiff's motion to compel venue-related discovery as relevant and proportional to the needs of the case. "Defendant must disclose its total product sales in Oregon, with one exception. . . . [I]nformation on its direct internet sales is unlikely to lead to relevant evidence on whether Defendant has a 'regular and established place of business' in Oregon. . . . Defendant must disclose the activities of third-party vendors of Defendant's products, and Defendant's relationships with these vendors, because such information could lead to relevant evidence. . . . [I]nformation on the activities of Defendant's agents, whether the agent is based in Oregon or not, [and] information on professional services in Oregon retained by Defendant could lead to relevant evidence and is proportional to the needs of the case. . . . Defendant must disclose any substantial amount of personal property it owns, leases, or manages in Oregon, including marketing materials, demonstration equipment, and product literature. . . . Defendant's leases of trade show booths or conference spaces could lead to relevant evidence and should be produced. . . . [Phone number and address] listings created by third parties independently of Defendant are not discoverable, but Defendant must disclose any other listings that it directed."

Nike, Inc. v. Skechers USA, Inc., 3-16-cv-00007 (ORD June 30, 2017, Order) (Papak, MJ)

Employing Exclusive Sales Representative Within District Sufficient to Establish Regular and Established Place of Business

Following the Supreme Court's decision in TC Heartland LLC v. Kraft Foods Grp. Brands LLC, 137 S. Ct. 1514 (2017), the court denied defendant's motion to transfer for improper venue and found that defendant had a regular and established place of business in the forum through its employment of a sales representative in the forum. "At the time this case was filed, [defendant's sales representative in the forum] worked exclusively for [defendant] as a sales executive in this District. [The sales representative] had been working full-time for [defendant] from within the Eastern District of Texas for over seven years. [Defendant] paid [him] a salary and maintained [his] compensation plan online through its human resources department, which outlined his territory and assignments. . . . [Defendant] provided [its sales representative] with 'administrative support' from [defendant's] Minnesota office such that [he] could continue working from his office in the Eastern District of Texas. Under this arrangement, [he] contacted and sold products to customers using an 'office' telephone number with an Eastern District of Texas area code. . . . Technology has revolutionized the way businesses operate and the way consumers interact with those businesses. . . . This important shift has been recognized by many courts."

Raytheon Company v. Cray, Inc., 2-15-cv-01554 (TXED June 29, 2017, Order) (Gilstrap, USDJ)

Judge Gilstrap Recognizes Four-Factor Test for Determining Regular and Established Place of Business Under 28 U.S.C. § 1400(b)

In determining whether defendant maintained a regular and established place of business in the forum for purposes of 28 U.S.C. § 1400(b), the court recognized a four-factor approach consisting of physical presence, defendant's representations, benefits received, and targeted interactions. "Since the Supreme Court’s decision in [TC Heartland LLC v. Kraft Foods Grp. Brands LLC, 137 S. Ct. 1514 (2017)], this Court has received a number of motions to dismiss or transfer based on improper venue. It is evident from these motions, and their subsequent briefing, that there is uncertainty among the litigants regarding the scope of the phrase 'regular and established place of business.' . . . [T]his Court now attempts to provide guideposts to point the venue analysis in a single coherent direction. . . . First, the Court considers the extent to which a defendant has a physical presence in the district, including but not limited to property, inventory, infrastructure, or people. At the most basic level, a retail store, warehouse, or other facility in the district weighs strongly in favor of finding a regular and established place of business. However . . . the lack of a physical building in the district is not dispositive. . . . Other forms of physical presence may also help support a finding of a regular and established place of business, such as inventory or property in the district[,] [and] the presence of equipment or infrastructure that is owned (or leased) by a defendant and used to provide services to customers. . . . Additionally, courts have considered the presence of employees in the district when determining whether a defendant has a regular and established place of business. . . . Second, the Court looks at the extent to which a defendant represents, internally or externally, that it has a presence in the district. . . . Third, the Court considers the extent to which a defendant derives benefits from its presence in the district, including but not limited to sales revenue. . . . Finally, the Court looks at the extent to which a defendant interacts in a targeted way with existing or potential customers, consumers, users, or entities within a district, including but not limited to through localized customer support, ongoing contractual relationships, or targeted marketing efforts."

Raytheon Company v. Cray, Inc., 2-15-cv-01554 (TXED June 29, 2017, Order) (Gilstrap, USDJ)