| Doctrine of Equivalents |
12/17. The U.S.
Court of Appeals (FedCir) issued its opinion in Intermatic
v. Lamson & Sessions, a patent infringement
case involving the doctrine of equivalents. Intermatic holds U.S.
Patent No. 5,280,135, titled "Outdoor Electrical
Outlet Cover". It filed a complaint in U.S. District Court (NDIll)
against Lamson & Sessions alleging patent infringement.
The jury returned a verdict in favor of Intermatic. The
Appeals Court addressed the issues of claim construction,
literal infringement, the doctrine of equivalents, and
invalidity. The Appeals Court affirmed in part and reversed in
part. Judge Newman dissented in part, regarding the doctrine
of equivalents.
12/17. The U.S.
Court of Appeals (FedCir) issued its opinion in Bose
v. JBL, another patent infringement case
involving the doctrine of equivalents. Bose is the owner
of U.S.
Patent No. 5,714,721 titled "Porting", which
relates to loudspeaker technology. Bose filed a complaint in U.S. District Court (DMass)
against JBL alleging patent infringement. JBL moved for
summary judgment of non-infringement, both literal and under
the doctrine of equivalents. The District Court granted JBL
summary judgment of non-infringement with respect to literal
infringement, but denied its motion for summary judgment under
the doctrine of equivalents. After a bench trial, the District
Court entered judgment for Bose and awarded damages. The
Appeals Court affirmed.
The Supreme Court
will hear oral argument in the Festo case, No. 00-1543,
on January 8, 2002. See, Festo Corporation v. Shoketsu Kinzoku
Koygo Kabushiki, 234 F.3d 558, 56 USPQ2d 1865 (Fed. Cir. 2000)
(en banc), cert. granted, 121 S.Ct. 2519 (2001). |
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| More News |
12/17. The FTC announced that it
filed a complaint in U.S. District
Court (NDNY) against several
defendants located in Montreal, Canada, alleging
violation of the Federal Trade Commission Act and the FTC's
Telemarketing Sales Rule. The complaint states that the
defendants operated a telemarketing scam that targeted elderly
U.S. citizens, conned them into disclosing credit card
numbers, and then used web site payment services to illegally
bill the consumers' credit cards for merchandise they did not
order. The FTC also stated that the District Court issued a
temporary restraining order. See, FTC release.
12/17. The House
Financial Services Committee issued its report on HR 556,
the Unlawful Internet Gambling Funding Prohibition Act. See,
Report No. 107-339.
12/12. The U.S.
Court of Appeals (2ndCir) issued its opinion
in USA
v. BMI, an antitrust case involving
interpretation and enforcement of the BMI consent decree,
which pertains to music licensing and related matters. The
Appeals Court affirmed in part, and vacated and remanded in
part. |
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| Representatives Introduce
Bill to Implement NextWave Settlement |
12/13. Rep. Bill
Tauzin (R-LA), Rep. James
Sensenbrenner (R-WI), Rep. Bill Thomas
(R-CA), and Rep. John
Conyers (D-MI) introduced HR 3484,
the Prompt Utilization of Wireless Spectrum Act of 2001, a
bill to implement the proposed
settlement agreement [PDF] between NextWave, the FCC, DOJ,
and re-auction winners.
Rep. Tauzin, the Chairman of the House Commerce Committee,
said in a statement in the Congressional Record (December 14,
at E2318) that "Nextwave's C block licenses have laid
fallow for too long and need to be put to good use. The
settlement agreement authorized by the prompt utilization of
Wireless Spectrum Act of 2001 may not be the prettiest or
easiest way to ensure that these licenses are put to good use.
But this legislation, and the corresponding settlement, appear
to be the best way to put them to good use."
Similarly, Rep. Conyers, the ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary
Committee, said in a statement in the Congressional Record
(December 14, at E2312) that "It benefits the government
by providing ten billion dollars in revenues to our Treasury.
It benefits the original license holder by preserving the
benefit of the bargain it had originally negotiated. It
benefits our bankruptcy code, by preserving the doctrine of
the stay and the power of the courts to enforce it, even
against the government. And it benefits consumers by
permitting the spectrum to come on the market as soon as
possible, fostering much needed competition."
The bill was referred to the House Commerce Committee, House
Judiciary Committee, House Ways and Means Committee, and House
Budget Committee. The settlement agreement is premised upon
passage of implementing legislation by December 31, 2001. |
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| Christmas Schedule |
| The Tech Law Journal Daily E-Mail Alert will not be
published on Monday, December 24, Tuesday, December 25, or
Wednesday, December 26. |
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| Wednesday, Dec 19 |
LOCATION CHANGE. 10:00
AM. The House
Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and
Consumer Protection will hold a hearing titled Electronic
Communications Networks in the Wake of September 11th. The
witnesses will be Steven Randich (NASDAQ), Matthew Andresen
(The Island ECN), Catherine Kinney (NYSE), Kim Bang (Bloomberg
Tradebook), Kevin O'Hara (Archipelago), Joel Steinmetz (Instinet),
and Keith Jamiatis (NYFIX Millennium). Rep. Cliff Stearns
(R-FL) will preside. Room 2322, Rayburn Building.
10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Federal Communications Commission's
(FCC) Advisory Committee for the 2003 World Radiocommunication
Conference (WRC-03 Advisory Committee) will hold a meeting.
See, notice
in Federal Register. Location: FCC, 445 12th Street, SW, Room
TW-C305.
Deadline to submit oppositions and comments to the FCC in
response to Cingular Wireless', Nextel's, and Verizon
Wireless' petitions for reconsideration of certain provisions
of the FCC's October 12 orders addressing and conditionally
approving requests for waivers and approval of revised
deployment plans for wireless Enhanced 911 (E911) services.
See, FCC
Notice. (CC Docket No. 94-102.)
Deadline to submit comments to the National Telecommunications
and Information Administration (NTIA) in response to its
Request for Comments on Deployment of Broadband Networks and
Advanced Telecommunications. See, notice. |
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| Thursday, Dec 20 |
10:00 AM. The Senate
Judiciary Committee will hold a business meeting.
Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.
1:30 PM. The U.S. International Telecommunication Advisory
Committee (ITAC) will hold a meeting regarding preparations
for the 2002 World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC).
See, notice
in Federal Register. Location: State Department, Room 1408. |
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| Friday, Dec 21 |
| 8:30 AM. Federal Trade
Commission (FTC) Chairman Timothy Muris will speak at the Brookings Institute
roundtable titled "Trade and Investment Policy."
Location: Brookings Institute, Falk Auditorium, 1775
Massachusetts Avenue, NW. |
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| About Tech Law Journal |
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