This case highlights the strengthening resolve of the computer industry to resist patent trolls by vigorously defending unfounded claims in litigation...
Atlanta, Georgia (PRWEB) April 27, 2016
The Atlanta-based law firm of Hill, Kertscher & Wharton, LLP recently defeated all six patent infringement claims filed against their client in a federal district court in California. (KINGLITE HOLDINGS INC., v. MICRO-STAR INTERNATIONAL CO., LTD, MSI COMPUTER CORP., Giga-Byte Technology Co., Ltd. and G.B.T., Inc., American Megatrends, Inc., Case No. 2:15-cv-09612, Judge James Selna).
HKW’s clients were originally accused of infringement of 25 patents, most of which relate to operations of the BIOS, the system which boots the operating system of a computer or other embedded system. Three of the patents were dropped from the case, and the Court opted to break the remaining claims into phases of six patents each. The number of asserted patents makes this one of the largest pending patent assertions in the United States.
The Court invalidated one of the six patents on the basis that the patent claimed an abstract concept (security/authentication) pursuant to the Supreme Court’s 2014 decision in Alice Corp. Pty. Ltd. v. CLS Bank Int’l, 134 S. Ct. 2347 (2014). Kinglite dismissed with prejudice two other patents in response to a tentative opinion addressing their potential invalidity under the Federal Circuit’s decision in In re Nuitjen, 500 F.3d 1346, 1353 (Fed. Cir. 2007), holding that patent claims encompassing transitory signals are invalid. After Plaintiff’s experts were deposed on the infringement issues relating to the other three patents, the Plaintiff agreed to a consent judgment of non-infringement on all remaining patents. Accordingly, the Court entered final judgment on Phase 1 in favor of the defendants.
Separately, HKW successfully petitioned the United States Patent and Trademark Office to institute Inter Partes Review proceedings which may result in the cancellation of the claims of as many as fourteen of the Kinglite asserted patents based on newly-identified prior art.
HKW co-founding partner, Steven G. Hill, believes the disposition of these claims provides a window into the future. “This case highlights the strengthening resolve of the computer industry to resist patent trolls by vigorously defending unfounded claims in litigation, while also pursuing invalidation of the patents in the Patent Office,” said Hill. “Our firm is pleased to be able to play a leadership role in this important effort.”
The HKW team recently filed a motion seeking attorney’s fees for successfully defending against the first six Kinglite patents, a decision on which is anticipated in May.
About Hill, Kertscher & Wharton, LLP: Nationally recognized for its work on behalf of businesses and individuals, the AV Rated law firm of Hill, Kertscher & Wharton, LLP provides top tier legal representation in intellectual property and business litigation, corporate law, and employment matters. The firm has added four attorneys to their expanding practice in the past 18 months and continues to be a leader in technology and unfair competition litigation, including cases involving patents, copyrights, trademarks and trade secrets.