In Intellectual Ventures I LLC v. Toshiba Corp., et al., C.A. No. 13-453-SLR (D. Del. Sept. 7, 2016), Judge Robinson granted the defendants’ motion to amend their answers and counterclaims to include a defense of improper inventorship of the patent-in-suit. The litigation arose from a patent issued to the plaintiff’s predecessor-in-interest. The subject of the motion…

Recent amendments to the Delaware Statutory Trust Act, effective August 1, 2016, provide for the ability to opt out of separate legal entity status. [Read our July 2016 update HERE] Some practitioners have expressed concern that by opting out of separate legal entity status, a Delaware statutory trust might not qualify as a “person” who can…

In Pfizer Inc., et al. v. Mylan Inc., et al., C.A. No. 15-960-SLR (D. Del. Aug. 12, 2016), Judge Robinson denied the defendants’ motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction as to defendants Mylan Pharmaceuticals (“MPI”) and Mylan Laboratories Ltd. (“MLL”) and denied the motion to dismiss without prejudice for improper venue and failure to…

In Sprint Commc’ns Co. L.P. v. Comcast Cable Commc’ns, LLC, et al., C.A. No. 12-1013-RGA (D. Del. Aug. 18, 2016), Judge Andrews dismissed without prejudice the defendants’ motion to declare the case exceptional and extended the deadline for the defendants to file a renewed motion to 30 days from the Federal Circuit’s decision on the pending…

In W.L. Gore & Associates, Inc. v. C.R. Bard Inc. and Bard Peripheral Vascular, Inc., C.A No. 11-515 (D. Del. July 27, 2016), Chief Judge Stark denied the plaintiff’s motion for sanctions against the defendants. In its motion, the plaintiff alleged that, on the morning of trial, the defendants contended that they had recently found a…

In Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. & Novartis AG v. Breckenridge Pharmaceutical Inc., et al., C.A. Nos. 14-1043, 14-1196, and 14-1289 (D. Del. Aug. 18, 2016), Judge Andrews denied the parties’ motions to exclude each other’s expert witnesses. Noting that a judge’s role as a “gatekeeper” is not as critical in a bench trial, Judge Andrews found that…

In Masimo Corp. v. Phillips North America Electronics Corp., et al., C.A. Nos. 09-80 and 11-742 (D. Del. Aug. 15, 2016), Chief Judge Stark denied both parties’ motions to strike various expert reports. First, the Court denied the plaintiff’s motion to strike portions of the defendants’ reply expert report. The plaintiff argued that the defendants had…

In UCB, Inc. v. Accord Healthcare, Inc., C.A. No. 13-1206-LPS (D. Del. Aug. 12, 2016), Chief Judge Stark issued a post-trial decision following an ANDA trial held in December 2015. The Court began its 96-page opinion setting forth 54 pages of findings of fact. The Court noted that Accord Healthcare, Inc. had stipulated to infringement and…

In Cronos Technologies LLC v. Expedia Inc., C.A. No. 13-1538-LPS (D. Del. Aug. 15, 2016), Chief Judge Stark clarified the reasoning for his order granting Expedia’s motion for summary judgment of non-infringement. The Court initially granted the motion for summary judgment on July 22, 2016, following briefing, oral argument, and supplemental briefing addressing claim construction. In…

In Two-Way Media Ltd. v. Comcast Cable Communications, LLC, et al., C.A. Nos. 14-006 and 14-1212 (D. Del. Aug. 15, 2016), Judge Andrews granted in part the defendants’ motion for judgment on the pleadings pursuant to 35 U.S.C. § 101, finding four of the five patents-in-suit ineligible and dismissing as moot the fifth patent due to…