Tyler TX Facebook

Follow Donny on Twitter

Username:
Password:
  Remember Me   Forgot password?  Register
0-9  A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z  

Find or Refer a Contractor in Tyler

Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, are we in the closet about patent litigation abuse in East Texas?

December 24th, 2010

Patent Litigation East Texas“Don’t ask, don’t tell” has come back into our attention once again as a number of court decisions have President Barak Obama and his administration reconsidering the policy of any homosexual military man or woman keeping their sexual preference to themselves.

This policy is the ultimate case of “turning a blind eye” or looking the other way. Saving the debate of the policy to “Don’t ask, don’t tell” in the military for other blogs, we do want to visit East Texas’ own practice of the “Don’t ask, don’t tell”.

With tongue firmly stuck in cheek and shoulders shrugged in wonder, we can “say” that we don’t know why the number of patent infringement cases had grown from 14 in 2003 to 256 in 2006, but who are we really kidding? Can East Texas continue the “Don’t ask, don’t tell” approach towards the growing number of “patent trolls” paying a visit to its humble little court circuit?

This unethical practice of buying off patents for the sole purpose of suing other business over patent infringements has been quietly picking up steam the past 7 years and Marshall, Texarkana, and Tyler are their favorite dance partners.

What once started out as these “trolls” taking advantage of the rules and policies of the eastern Texas court circuits is now coming dangerously close to becoming a source of scandal. Isn’t it a little suspicious that one patent lawyer’s father is a judge who decides favorably for plaintiffs in infringement cases?

As is taking place nationally with our military perhaps it’s time for the “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy to be reconsidered in East Texas before it’s too late.

Reform to Patent Litigation in Marshall Texas

December 21st, 2010

marshall texas patent trollsLike a modern day Alamo, the people of the Republic of Texas in Marshall need to board up the windows and doors and get ready for the fight of their life. Except it’s not the Mexican Army that’s coming, it’s the Coalition for Patent Fairness. And let me tell you, they have some heavy hitters. In response to heavy hits that they have been taking, some large businesses have formed or joined this coalition in order to bring reform to how patents and patent litigation is done.

The list includes popular companies like Apple, Cisco, Dell, Google, Intel, Microsoft, and Palm. We could confidently say that it’s not so much what is taking place in the courts of East Texas with their high rate of rewarded patent infringement lawsuits that has become the enemy of these companies than the whole system of patent litigation itself. The groups formed in this coalition have clearly stated on their website the ammunition they plan on using for the fight, this includes no more forums shopping, putting a cap on damages, and the standard of whether or not infringement has taken place.

These weapons of choice will make a big impact in infringement cases and thus, a direct attack against the gold mine that has come to East Texas. Although there is not a lot being said in the media, this coalition is quietly gathering an powerful army that includes the likes of the institutions of Federal Trade Commission and National Academy of Sciences, media giants like New York Times and Los Angeles Times, as well as President Barak Obama stating that it is part of his economy stimulus agenda.

There is no denying that patent infringement litigation has become a great benefit to the small town of Marshall, but with the pieces that seem to be coming together, it looks like they are in store for the fight of their lives.