Court upholds jury defense verdict based on the on sale bar
Leader Technologies, Inc. v. Facebook, Inc., Civil Action No. 08-862a-LPS, March 14, 2011. (D.I. 628, D.I. 629)
Stark, J. Defendant’s renewed motion for JMOL of no direct infringement is denied and its additional motions for JMOL and for a new trial are denied. Plaintiff’s motion for JMOL or a new trial is denied.
The disputed technology relates to Facebook’s website, which is claimed to infringe 11 claims of one patent. After a 7-day trial a jury found literal infringement of each asserted claim, but that Facebook did not control its employees or end users. The patent was not found to be anticipated or obvious, but was invalid based on the on sale bar and public use bar. The court agreed that the disputed claims did not require user interaction and upheld the verdict of direct literal infringement. The court finds that the submission of a proposed construction of a claim does not operate as a waiver of an indefiniteness challenge. Defendant unsuccessfully challenged the adequacy of Plaintiff’s Rule 50(a) motion on the grounds that it was not sufficiently specific in time to cure any defect since the written motion was not submitted until after the case went to the jury. The court finds sufficient evidence to support the jury’s invalidity verdict.
