Earlier today, the U.S. Supreme Court issued two rulings on attorney fees in patent litigation and fee shifting. In Octane Fitness, LLC v. ICON Health & Fitness, Inc. the court rejected earlier decisions on the ‘exceptional circumstances’ needed to award fees and wrote than exceptional case is “simply one that stands out from others”. Continue reading US Fee Shifting
Monthly Archives: April 2014
World IP Day
April 26 is “World IP Day“. WIPO started the event in 2000 to “promote discussion of the role of intellectual property (IP) in encouraging innovation and creativity”. This year’s theme is the movies. Also, CIPO’s patent database will not be available this weekend from 6:00 p.m. on April 25 until 11:00 p.m. on April 27. Continue reading World IP Day
Smartphone “Posner Appeal”
The U.S. Court of Appeal for the Federal Circuit released its decision in Apple Inc. v. Motorola, Inc., the appeal from Judge Posner’s decision on smartphone patent litigation between the two companies. Judge Posner had denied both infringement actions on the basis that neither side could prove damages. In an opinion for the court, along with two opinions dissenting-in-part, the CAFC reversed-in-part, but affirmed, among other things, that Motorola was not entitled to an injunction for infringement of a FRAND-committed patent.
Judicial Appointments
George R. Locke, an IP lawyer with Norton Rose Fulbright in Montréal, René Leblanc, a lawyer with the Department of Justice Canada, and Martine St-Louis, a lawyer with McCarthy Tétrault in Montréal were appointed today to the Federal Court. Justice Boivin was elevated to the Federal Court of Appeal. Appointments were also made to the Ontario, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador and Tax courts.