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stories filed under: "marshall texas"
Legal Issues

Legal Issues

by Mike Masnick


Filed Under:
marshall texas, patent trolls, patents



What Was That About Marshall Texas Becoming Less Popular For Patent Lawsuits?

from the and-the-numbers-are-in... dept

Over the last few months there's been some talk that Marshall, Texas was becoming less popular for questionable patent lawsuits. If so, someone hasn't told the patent hoarders. The Patent Troll Tracker has come out with his November Troll Call, noting that 244 companies were sued for patent infringement in eastern Texas alone, compared to 162 in Los Angeles, San Francisco/Silicon Valley, New York City, Chicago, Delaware, and New Jersey... combined. Of course, it is true that a number of the Texas lawsuits were against a large number of companies in a single shot, which helps that total get to be so large. However, there's a reason why those who are suing a bunch of companies at once all choose eastern Texas, and it's not because the district has suddenly become unfriendly to patent hoarders.

2 Comments | Leave a Comment..

 
Too Much Free Time

Too Much Free Time

by Mike Masnick


Filed Under:
marshall texas, patents



Marshall, Texas Continues To Be Excessively Popular For Patent Litigation

from the eastern-texas-justice dept

A large part of the reason that the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals was established was that lawyers filing patent litigation suits were jurisdiction shopping, choosing district courts that were considered favorable for patent lawsuits. Of course, once the new court of appeals was set up, it just shifted the jurisdiction shopping one level lower -- and patent lawyers eventually settled on a favorite place: Marshall, Texas. Word spread quickly, as the court famously sided with patent holders at a much higher rate than any other court, and they also tended to speed through trials, so patent holders could get a fast decision. In some cases, those who were sued would settle rather than deal with an almost guaranteed loss in eastern Texas. While there have been some reports recently that (perhaps as a result of all the publicity), the folks in Marshall have started to get a bit more critical when it comes to patents, it appears that patent lawyers haven't quite figured this out yet. An anonymous attorney has started tracking where patent lawsuits are being filed and has discovered that Marshall far outranks the other courts -- especially when the case is being filed by a more questionable "patent licensing" firm. The report also notes that more patent lawsuits have been filed in Marshall this year than all of last year (during which more such lawsuits were filed than the previous two years combined). It still seems fairly ridiculous that companies that have absolutely no real presence in the region can bring their lawsuits in Marshall.

10 Comments | Leave a Comment..

 
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