January 11th, 2011
The Discovery Channels popular program “Myth busters” pride themselves on discovering whether or not a presupposition is correct. Well, I have a myth that needs some busting.
Is the eastern court district of Texas the best forum for patent infringement cases? Patent litigation has become more than protecting your intellectual property rights, it has become a form of business for some.
There is a genre of companies who carry the “patent troll” label based on the unethical business of obtaining patents from other businesses or firms in order to use them to collect financial rewards in patent infringement lawsuits.
Whether it’s one of these “patent troll” cases or your normal run-of-the-mill case, the plaintiff has the right to choose what “forum” or court location the case is brought to.
And throughout the patent litigation world, East Texas has become the place to go. But the question is, are the reasons why myth or reality? It has been explained that the major factors for East Texas becoming the location of choice is due to rocket docket (fast processing of patent infringement cases) and percentage of plaintiff victories.
But the truth is, in a recent investigation of patent litigation cases throughout the United States, the eastern district of Texas does not even rank in the top 5 of either one of those categories.
When it comes to “rocket docket” East Texas ranks in the bottom half and in victory percentage for plaintiffs it ranks 7th place. So is East Texas the ideal forum for patent infringement lawsuits?
When it comes to technical ranking, no it is not the best. But, just like the aging star athlete, reputation and experience can matter more, and I think that is what still makes East Texas the most popular forum.
Tags: Court Location, Discovery Channels, East Texas, Eastern District Of Texas, Financial Rewards, Intellectual Property Rights, is patent trolling wrong, Litigation Cases, Myth Busters, Obtaining Patents, Patent Infringement Cases, Patent Infringement Lawsuits, Patent Litigation, patent troll label, Plaintiff, Plaintiffs, Presupposition, Reputation, Rocket Docket, Star Athlete, Texas Ranks, Unethical Business, what is a patent troll
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December 23rd, 2010
A lot has been said about so called “patent trolls” creating a ruckus with their abuse of the legal system in order to gain wealth. This practice of obtaining and using held patent rights to gain financial rewards by targeting larger, successful businesses for patent infringements has been greatly looked down upon.
This victimization of large companies has woken a sleeping giant and resulted in the formation of the Coalition of Patent Fairness in order to address the abuse of patent infringement. But, as we use to say back in the day, while big companies have their one finger pointing in accusation, there are 3 more pointing back at them. It looks like the big guys are going after each other as well. In what has become a highly competitive race for the best “smartphone” the big boys are getting a little dirty.
Although patent infringement is a legitimate concern, it seems to me that Apple and Motorola are getting a little petty as each has filed lawsuit against one another for technology “copycatting”. Motorola was the first to strike after filing suit versus Apple for tech infringements concerning the iPhone, iTouch, iPad. But Apple has hit back more recently after filing for tech infringement of their touchscreen and display application versus Motorola and their Droid phone.
And based on Apples choice of Wisconsin for the filing, it looks like they mean to take care of business fast. East Texas has long been seen as the location of choice, but due to the back up of so many patent litigation cases, Wisconsin is quickly gaining recognition as the fastest docket in the nation. Despite location choice, these two companies actions versus one another looks to have taken the edge off of what can be deemed as “unethical” business done by “patent trolls”.
Tags: Accusation, Big Boys, Big Guys, Corrupt Nature, East Texas, Financial Rewards, Ipad, Iphone, Legitimate Concern, Litigation Cases, Location Choice, One Finger, Patent attorneys in East Texas, Patent Fairness Coalition, Patent Infringement, Patent Infringements, Patent Litigation, Patent Litigation abuse, Patent Rights, Ruckus, Sleeping Giant, Unethical Business, Victimization
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December 21st, 2010
Stop patent trolling, boycott Marshall! That’s right, don’t go to see the Christmas lights or visit the Fire Ant festival this year. I mean, people like Sheryl Crowe do it right? Remember, she was the one to tell us how she only uses two squares of toilet paper per sit down in order to save the trees.
Or what about the freedom fry idea? Oh you remember, when France questioned our invasion of Iraq, we decided to boycott using “French” as a label for something. So, if we are to stop the unethical business performed by “patent trolls” we should boycott Marshall, because, well, they are the reason for it, right?
Well, before you cancel that yearly trip to check out the lights, let’s think about it a little more. The increase of patent infringement cases that has taken place in Marshall has been a little… disturbing, but the practice by patent trolls of utilizing bought patents to sue for patent infringement long before the good citizens of Marshall were found to be favorable to these types of cases.
The increase of cases in Marshall has taken place the past 5 to 6 years, the termology and practice of patent trolls can be traced back to 1993. No, to blame Marshall and the people that serve on the juries of these cases is like blaming the rich guy for having a nice car to be stolen.
Bad people do bad things because they are bad, not because they are tempted into it by ideal circumstances. So, sorry Cheryl, we will have to save the boycotting idea for something else.
Tags: 6 Years, Christmas, Christmas Lights, Circumstances, Fire Ant, Freedom, Fry, Good Citizens, Invasion Of Iraq, Juries, Marshall, Marshall Texas attorneys, Marshall Texas patent trolls, Marshall TX patent attorney, Patent Infringement Cases, Patents, People, Sheryl Crowe, Squares, Toilet Paper, Trees, Trolls, Unethical Business
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December 21st, 2010
It’s like they say, “one bad apple can ruin the whole barrel”. This past decade has seen an increasing rise in the number of patent litigation cases taken place, which in turn has produced such things as “rocket docket” court districts like in Marshall, Texas, a call for patent reform, and the unethical business of “patent trolls”.
Patent trolls are the bad apple of patent litigation and, you would think, the potential source of ruining the current patent system. It is kind of like what is taking place with air travel and airport security this holiday season. Recently we have heard or seen protests like, “don’t touch my junk” and of scantily clad individuals entering airport security.
This has been brought on to question TSA’s methods for identifying potential terrorist threats. And due to the undesired methods of full body scans and detailed “pat downs” many are questioning whether or not to travel by air for the holidays.
And all of this is because of what a few, bad men have done through their acts of terrorism. So, the questions is, has the actions of patent trolls hurt legitimate patent litigation cases? The main damage that could be done by the “patent troll” type of cases is the possibility of the jury being swayed by the motivation of the patent troll for the lawsuit.
But, considering that their responsibility is simply to gauge whether or not the patent has been infringed, this ultimately should not affect patent infringement cases. And if the number of cases is any indication, then we can say that it has not hindered. With only a few “slow” times the past 2-3 years, patent lawsuits have continuously been on the rise. So have patent trolls hurt legitimate cases? The answer: No. I guess these apples are so bad after all?
Tags: Acts Of Terrorism, Airport Security, Apples, Bad Apple, Bad Men, Entering Airport, Full Body Scans, Holiday Season, Legitimate Cases, Litigation Cases, Marshall Texas, Marshall Texas Attorney, Marshall TX Attorneys, Patent Infringement Cases, Patent Lawsuits, Patent Litigation, Patent Reform, Patent System, Rocket Docket, Terrorist Threats, Trolls, Unethical Business
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October 20th, 2009
For those still wondering what there is to do in Tyler we have an idea that will start in Tyler Texas (actually Mineola Texas) and then take you somewhere else. This trip is great for people who want to get the heck out of Tyler but still enjoy the scenery on the way out. You can leave Mineola in the morning and take a trip to Dallas or Fort Worth in less than 2 hours. Once at the train station you can hitch an inner city rail to downtown or be taken by taxi to your city destination. Once finished you can take a cab back to the train station and ride the scenic route back to Tyler Texas. This is a really fun excursion that will be something different and get you out of your familiar town for a little while. The Mineola train station is an Amtrak train station and is owned by the government.
Amtrak is unique in that it is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971 because of declining revenue and union laborers fighting to keep a dead operation alive. The members of its board of directors are appointed by the President of the United States and are subject to confirmation by the United States Senate. Common stock was issued in 1971 to railroads that contributed capital and equipment; these shares convey almost no benefits but their current holders declined a 2002 buy-out offer by Amtrak.
This makes us wonder if these railroad companies like the idea of keeping what’s left of the capitalist side of the railroad business partially alive instead of letting the government completely take over another industry. To this end we are glad there are corporations that still have an ownership stake in a government take over. I believe it will keep things a little more honest as corporate executives must face jail time unlike many politicians who can use unethical business ownership for political ends.
Tags: Amtrak Station, Amtrak Train Station, amtrak tyler texas, amtrak tyler tx, Business Ownership, Capitalist Side, Common Stock, Corporate Executives, Inner City, Jail Time, Mineola Texas, mineola train station, Ownership Stake, President Of The United States, Railroad Business, Railroad Companies, Scenic Route, Train Ride, Tyler Texas, tyler texas train station, Unethical Business, Union Laborers, United States Senate
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