The Software IP Report
Fed. Cir. Impact on Patent Pleading Requirements Continues
By Charles Bieneman
07/04/2012
Categories: Patent Civil Procedure, The Software IP Report
Following the recent Federal Circuit decision in In re Bill of Lading Transmission and Processing System Patent Litigation, at least one district court has already demonstrated that patent plaintiffs will most definitely have an easier time pleading patent infringement. Now a Delaware court, ruling on complaints in eight cases brought by the same plaintiff, has provided another clear example of how defendants may have a nearly impossible task when moving to dismiss claims of direct patent infringement (which was all this plaintiff had alleged).
In a very brief opinion denying motions to dismiss, the court, citing In re Bill of Lading, stated that “[t]he allegations are sparse. No more is required.” Because the plaintiff’s complaint followed Form 18 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, motions to dismiss were denied.
The court did throw a small bone to the defendants, stating that it would consider a defense argument “that early claim construction might flesh out whether there is any merit to this lawsuit.”
The eight affected cases were:
- Real Time Social Inventions LLC v. CMI Marketing Inc., No. 1:2012cv00182 (D. Del. June 29, 2012);
- Real Time Social Inventions LLC v. Conduit USA Inc., No. 1:2012cv00184 (D. Del. June 29, 2012);
- Real Time Social Inventions LLC v. Facebook Inc., No. 1:2012cv00185 (D. Del. June 29, 2012);
- Real Time Social Inventions LLC v. Glam Media Inc. et al, No. 1:2012cv00186 (D. Del. June 29, 2012);
- Real Time Social Inventions LLC v. Oracle Corporation, No. 1:2012cv00187 (D. Del. June 29, 2012);
- Real Time Social Inventions LLC v. Rockmelt Inc., No. 1:2012cv00188 (D. Del. June 29, 2012);
- Real Time Social Inventions LLC v. Salesforce.com Inc., No. 1:2012cv00189 (D. Del. June 29, 2012);
- Real Time Social Inventions LLC v. Yammer Inc., No. 1:2012cv00190 (D. Del. June 29, 2012).