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13 SMU Sci. & Tech. L. Rev. 121 (2009-2010)
Complex Patent Cases: Observations from the Bench

handle is hein.journals/comlrtj13 and id is 125 raw text is: Complex Patent Cases: Observations from the Bench Honorable John D. Love* Jessica L. Hannah** Jong K. Choi*** I. INTRODUCTION In 2002, plaintiffs filed thirty-two patent cases in the Eastern District of Texas.' Just four years later, that number grew to 568.2 With such a great volume of lawsuits comes experience in managing such cases, as well as greater insight into what constitutes as both effective representation and com- mon mistakes. Patent cases are not only administratively challenging and technologically complex, but they can also be significant financial burdens for the parties.3 Furthermore, when multiple parties, multiple patents, multi- ple claims, and multiple accused products are involved, the costs and com- plexities will often increase exponentially.4 In these large and complex cases, the parties can spend a great deal of time and effort during the discov- ery and pretrial hearing stages of their cases. This article will examine some of the major obstacles to the efficient adjudication of complex patent cases and provide observations on effectively managing them. This article will also outline procedures and observations regarding the discovery and pretrial * United States Magistrate Judge for the Eastern District of Texas, Tyler Divi- sion. Since 2002, Judge Love has been involved in over 180 patent cases in the Eastern District of Texas. Judge Love worked as the chief staff attorney for United States District Judge Leonard Davis from 2002 through 2005. Since that time, Judge Love has presided over more than 80 cases as a Magistrate Judge. ** Former judicial law clerk to the Honorable John D. Love; Associate, Capshaw DeRieux LLP, Longview, Texas; J.D., 2008, Golden Gate University School of Law, San Francisco, California; B.S. General Engineering, 2005, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. * Formerjudicial law clerk to the Honorable Leonard Davis; Associate, Kirkland & Ellis LLP, New York, New York; J.D., 2008, Suffolk University Law School, Boston, Massachusetts; B.A. Chemistry and History, 2001, University of Massachusetts at Amherst. 1. Yan Leychkis, Of Fire Ants and Claim Construction: An Empirical Study of the Meteoric Rise of the Eastern District of Texas as a Preeminent Forum for Pat- ent Litigation, 9 YALE J. L. & TECH. 193, 204-205 (2007) (listing the number of patent cases filed in the top ten districts from 2002 to 2006). 2. Id. 3. See id. at 233 n.21 (a 2003 survey found that companies spend an average of two million dollars solely on legal expenses in a single patent case). 4. See Linex Tech., Inc. v. Belkin Int'l, Inc., 628 F. Supp. 2d 703, 712 (E.D. Tex. 2008) (noting that because numerous parties and accused products are in- volved, the level of complexity of the case greatly increases).

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