Paid Search Engine Tools, LLC v. Google Canada Corporation et al, 2020 FC 992
Justice McVeigh - 2020-10-22
Read full decision. Summary prepared by Alan Macek:
The Defendants, Google, seek an order directing the determination of a question of law pursuant to rule 220(1)(a) of the Federal Courts Rules. Does the six-year limitation in section 55.01 of the Patent Act apply to a claim for “reasonable compensation” for “any damage sustained” pursuant to section 55(2) of the Patent Act such that in the present action no remedy, including no reasonable compensation, may be awarded for any act of infringement committed prior to [six-years before the Statement of Claim]? ... Google said this motion is appropriate given the context that the Plaintiff is claiming 16 years of damages in a patent case. ... I agree with PSET that the discoverability principle applies to the limitation period set forth at section 55.01 of the Patent Act. Based on my finding, Google’s proposed question is not a pure question of law, since facts relevant to PSET’s knowledge of the infringement and crystallization of its cause of action will need to be assessed. ... The motion is dismissed. (Thanks to Jordana Sanft for a copy of the decision)
Decision relates to:
- T-40-18 - PAID SEARCH ENGINE TOOLS, LLC v. GOOGLE CANADA CORPORATION ET AL
- A-269-20(2021 FCA 63) - which is an appeal from this decision