Eastern District of Texas Announces Fast Track Option for Patent Cases | Practical Law

Eastern District of Texas Announces Fast Track Option for Patent Cases | Practical Law

The US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas recently adopted a Track B Initial Patent Case Management Order that provides an optional "fast track" case schedule for patent cases with accelerated deadlines for infringement and invalidity contentions and new disclosure requirements for sales information and estimated damages.

Eastern District of Texas Announces Fast Track Option for Patent Cases

Practical Law Legal Update 2-559-2086 (Approx. 3 pages)

Eastern District of Texas Announces Fast Track Option for Patent Cases

by Practical Law Intellectual Property & Technology
Published on 28 Feb 2014 • USA (National/Federal)
The US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas recently adopted a Track B Initial Patent Case Management Order that provides an optional "fast track" case schedule for patent cases with accelerated deadlines for infringement and invalidity contentions and new disclosure requirements for sales information and estimated damages.
On February 25, 2014, the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas adopted a Track B Initial Patent Case Management Order that provides an alternative "fast track" case management schedule for patent cases. The Track B schedule includes accelerated deadlines for infringement and invalidity contentions and new disclosure requirements concerning damages. While the assigned judge's traditional case schedule for patent cases will apply by default (a Track A case schedule), the optional Track B schedule will apply if either:
  • All parties agree to use Track B and file a joint notice.
  • The court orders that Track B will apply.
Key features of the Track B case schedule include:
  • Accelerated Infringement Disclosures. Within 14 days after all defendants answer or file a motion under FRCP 12(b), the patent owner must:
    • serve infringement contentions and accompanying disclosures required by the district's Local Patent Rules (PLR) 3-1 and 3-2; and
    • produce all settlement or license agreements concerning the asserted or related patents.
  • Sales Information and Initial Disclosures. Within 30 days after the infringement contentions:
    • all parties must provide FRCP 26(a)(1) initial disclosures; and
    • each accused infringer must produce summary sales information for the accused products and reasonably similar products.
  • Good-faith Damages Estimate. Within 14 days after the initial disclosures and production of sales information, the patent owner must provide a non-binding estimate of its expected damages including a summary description of the method used to determine the estimate.
  • Accelerated Invalidity Contentions. Within 14 days after the good-faith damages estimate, each accused infringer must provide invalidity contentions that comply with PLR 3-3 and 3-4.
  • Case Management Conference. The order identifies several issues that the parties must discuss and include in the discovery plan filed before the case management conference.
  • Initial Discovery Limitations. Before the case management conference, each side is limited to five interrogatories, requests for production and requests for admission.