Patent Litigation

This declaratory relief action requested a judgment of noninfringement and invalidity. We successfully appealed a jurisdiction dismissal (142 F.3d 1266))(reversing dismissal for lack of personal jurisdiction and giving opponent a “Chutzpah Award”). After remand, the patentee counterclaimed on four patents involving semiconductor cleaning and drying technology used in state-of-the-art semiconductor fabrication equipment. We presented claim construction arguments at several Markman hearings. Following a month-long jury trial, this case was successfully settled.

This case, filed in the Northern District of California, involved patent infringement claims asserting that Dolby Digital sound-on-film technology infringed patents held by the plaintiff, Drexler Technology Corporation.  In addition to defending Dolby Laboratories, also represented a number of major entertainment companies (including Walt Disney Pictures, Fox, MGM, Universal Studios and Columbia Pictures) in this action.  After obtaining a claim construction (“Markman”) order supporting virtually every claim construction position advocated on behalf of our clients, the Court entered summary judgment in the defendant's favor on grounds of non-infringement and patent invalidity.

We represented the inventor in a patent infringement action alleging that certain of Aladdin's Software Digital Rights Management (DRM) products infringed the inventor's patent (covering an invention restricting unauthorized use of pirated computer software).  We secured a $2 million settlement after successfully defeating Aladdin's jurisdictional challenges, winning all contested claim constructions and receiving favorable orders on many discovery issues, including an award of sanctions for the defendants' discovery abuse.  The settlement was reached and finalized without incurring the additional expense of taking or defending any depositions.