Norton Rose Fulbright obtains jury verdict in an East Texas patent infringement suit
Business | November 2015
Norton Rose Fulbright represented Reflectix Inc., a subsidiary of Sealed Air Corporation, in a total defense win in a patent infringement suit in the Eastern District of Texas (Marshall Division) before Judge Rodney Gilstrap.
Brett Govett, the partner in Norton Rose Fulbright’s Dallas office who led the trial team, said:
“We are pleased that the jury concluded that there was no infringement and that the patent claims were invalid. This confirms our Reflectix’s position since the beginning.”
The plaintiff, Promethean, a subsidiary of Acacia Research Corporation, accused Reflectix of inducing infringement of four patents on Metallized Polymeric Film Reflective Insulation Material by selling alleged infringing reflective insulation products through customers such as Home Depot. The plaintiff also contended that Reflectix’s alleged infringement had been willful and sought damages in the form of a reasonable royalty.
Reflectix asserted that it did not infringe and that the patents were invalid in light of either the prior art or the simultaneous invention of the purported invention by Reflectix and others in its industry group. In three hours, the jury returned a complete defense verdict, finding that there was no infringement and that the patent claims were invalid.
Richard Krumholz, US Head of Dispute Resolution and Litigation for Norton Rose Fulbright, commented:
“This is yet another illustration of Norton Rose Fulbright’s ability to successfully try complex patent disputes in a jurisdiction that has become a hot-bed of infringement cases.”
The case, Promethean Insulation Technology LLC v. Sealed Air Corporation et al., case number, 2:13-cv-01113, was tried in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas (Marshall Division).
The Norton Rose Fulbright team consisted of partners Govett and Jon Skidmore, with assistance from partner Warren Huang, associate James Leito, counsel Marwan Elrakabawy, associates Nick Hendrix and Nathan Rees and legal assistant Ann Franklin. Jennifer Truelove of Marshall assisted as local counsel.
