Articles Posted in Patent Infringement

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Indianapolis, Indiana – In a patent infringement lawsuit pending in the Southern District of Indiana, plaintiff Capital Machine Company, Inc., an Indianapolis-based manufacturer of veneer production equipment, achieved dismissal of opposing party Miller Veneers‘ attorneys based on the law firm’s previous work for Capital on matters “substantially related” to the present one.

Miller Veneers, also of Indianapolis, IN, is a wood veneer manufacturer and past Capital Machine customer accused of infringing several patents covering machinery and methods for more efficiently cutting veneer. Co-Defendant Robert Brand is Capital’s former Vice President of Engineering, and the inventor of the patents at issue. After leaving Capital in 1996, worked for Miller Veneers, where he assisted in designing the allegedly infringing machines.

About a year after the suit was filed, Miller retained the services of Indianapolis-based law firm Barnes & Thornburg LLP (“B&T”). Upon B&T’s appearance in the case, Capital filed an Emergency Motion to Disqualify Counsel to disqualify B&T. This Motion was based on a conflict of interest arising from work that B&T had done for Capital, including providing advice regarding employment Brand’s relationship with Capital.

Under the law of the Seventh Circuit, a lawyer is prohibited from representing a new client who is adverse to a former client in a “substantially related matter.” In granting Capital’s motion top disqualify B&T, Judge Jane E. Magnus-Stinson noted that “Capital had, to varying degrees, used B&T for legal services, including both patent and labor/employment issues since the mid-1980’s” and found that B&T records corroborated in part, and did not refute, Capital’s claims that the current litigation is substantially similar to the prior B&T representation. The Court afforded “significant weight” to evidence that Capital had shared confidential information with B&T lawyers and that B&T provided Capital with, among other things, “[c]ounseling regarding employment matters generally, and specifically, as they relate to: (a) the ownership of inventions; and (b) Capital’s employment relationship with Defendant Robert Brand.”

Note: The patent litigation attorneys of Overhauser Law Offices, the publisher of this site, represented Capital Machine Company in obtaining the disqualification of Barnes & Thornburg. The Case No. is 1:09-cv-00702-JMS-DML, and a copy of the Order is available below.

Update: Click Here for an update on this Ruling.

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Indianapolis, Indiana – Patent attorneys for Remy International, Inc. of Pendleton, IN, have filed a lawsuit alleging Wetherill Associates, Inc., doing business as WAIGlobal, of Fort Lauderdale, FL, is infringing the following seven patents issued by the U.S. Patent Office: Patent No. 5,295,404, titled SHIFT LEVER MECHANISM FOR ENGINE STARTING APPARATUS; Patent No. 5,252,878, titled BRUSH HOLDER ASSEMBLY; Patent No. 5,307,700, titled ELECTRIC ENGINE STARTER; Patent No. 5,105,114, titled FRAME AND MAGNET ASSEMBLY FOR A DYNAMOELECTRIC MACHINE; Patent No. 5,268,605, titled ELECTRICAL FIELD CONNECTION; Patent No. 5,453,648, titled BRIDGE RECTIFIER HAVING AN OUTPUT TERMINAL STUD; and Patent No. 5,315,195, titled SELF-ATTACHING COVER FOR A DYNAMOELECTRIC MACHINE.

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 Indianapolis, Indiana – A multidistrict litigation panel has consolidated eleven patent infringement lawsuits with the case pending beforeSenior Judge Larry J. McKinneyand Magistrate Judge Debra McVicker Lynchin theSouthern District of Indiana. The cases, filed byGreenshift Corp.involve Patent No.7,601,858, titled METHOD OF PROCESSING ETHANOL BYPRODUCTS AND RELATED SUBSYSTEMS and issued by the U.S. Patent Office. The transfer order found that Indianapolis was a “readily accessible district near many of the alleged direct infringers … which are scattered throughout the Midwest.” The case no. is 1:2010cv08003.
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Evansville, Indiana – Patent lawyers for SOP Services, Inc., of Las Vegas, NV, and Bear Archery, Inc. of Evansville, IN, have filed a lawsuit against Precision Shooting Equipment, Inc. of Tuscon, AZ. The suit alleges infringement of two patents issued by the U.S. Patent Office: Patent No. 5,749,351, titled COMPOUND ARCHERY BOW; and Patent No. 5,921,227, also titled COMPOUND ARCHERY BOW. SOP Services is the assignee of these two patents, and Bear Archery is the exclusive licensee.

The complaint claims that the defendant is manufacturing, using, selling, and offering to sell compound bows having an infringing “past parallel limb” design and cites the defendant’s product guide as well as photographs. Plaintiffs also request a declaratory judgment that the defendant’s U.S. Patent No. 7,699,045 is invalid and not infringed.
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Indianapolis, Indiana – Patent attorneys for Eli Lilly and Company of Indianapolis, IN, have initiated litigation alleging Sandoz, Inc. of Princeton, NJ, is infringing Patent No. 5,464,826, as issued by the U.S. Patent Officeand titled METHOD OF TREATING TUMORS IN MAMMALS WITH 2′,2′-DIFLUORONUCLEOSIDES.

The ‘826 patent covers the drug marketed under the name GEMZAR(R) for the treatment of abnormal masses of tissue known as neoplasms. The complaint states that, in a separate lawsuit, the ‘826 patent was found invalid on grounds of obviousness-type double patenting, but that Lilly has appealed to the Federal Circuit and believes the ruling will be reversed. Lilly also holds approved New Drug Application No. 20-509 for the use of GEMZAR(R) as a treatment for certain types of cancer.


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 Indianapolis, Indiana – Jill Wimberly, et al. of Indianapolis, IN, have filed, pro se (on their own behalf, rather than being represented by a lawyer), a lawsuit alleging that numerous large corporations, as well as the U.S. Patent Office, violated their “civil rights” in misappropriating the plaintiffs’ intellectual property. In particular, the plaintiffs claim to have designed a type of adult underwear for those experiencing incontinence which allegedly resembles products marketed by Procter & Gamble and Kimberly-Clark.
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South Bend, Indiana – Patent lawyers for MedIdea, LLC of Longview, TX, filed a patent infringement suit alleging Zimmer Holdings, Inc. of Warsaw, IN, is infringing the following patents issued by the U.S. Patent Office: 6,200,350 and 6,383,225, which relate to proximal femoral prostheses, and Nos. 6,267,785, 6,379,391, 6,398,812, 6,821,300, and 7,229,478 which relate to prosthetic shoulder implants.

This case has been assigned to Judge Joseph Van Bokkelenand Magistrate Judge Christopher A. Nuechterlein in the Northern District of Indiana, and assigned case no. 3:10-cv-00283-JVB-CAN.
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Indianapolis, Indiana – Patent infringement lawyers for Eli Lilly and Company of Indianapolis, IN, filed a complaint alleging Actavis Totowa LLC of Little Falls, NJ, and Actavis Elizabeth LLC of Elizabeth, NJ, are infringing Patent No. 5,464,826, titled METHOD OF TREATING TUMORS IN MAMMALS WITH 2′,2′-DIFLUORONUCLEOSIDES and issued by the U.S. Patent Office.

The ‘826 patent covers the drug marketed under the name GEMZAR(R) for the treatment of abnormal masses of tissue known as neoplasms. The complaint states that, in a separate lawsuit, the ‘826 patent was found invalid on grounds of obviousness-type double patenting, but that Lilly has appealed to the Federal Circuit and believes the ruling will be reversed. Lilly also holds approved New Drug Application No. 20-509 for the use of GEMZAR(R) as a treatment for certain types of cancer.
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 Indianapolis, Indiana – Patent attorneys for Hill-Rom, Inc. of Batesville, IN, filed suit against Huntleigh Healthcare LLC and Huntleigh Healthcare, Inc., both of Eatontown, NJ, alleging an infringement of the following patents issued by the U.S. Patent Office: Patent No. 7,533,429; Patent No. 7,610,637; Patent No. 6,791,460; and Patent No. 6,208,250. The asserted patents cover bed lifting and positioning technology, and plaintiff claims the defendants are importing, making, using, selling, or offering to sell devices embodying the patented inventions, in violation of the Patent Act.
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Indianapolis, Indiana – Intellectual property attorneys for Masco Corporation of Indiana d/b/a Delta Faucet Company of Indianapolis, IN, have filed a lawsuit alleging Watermark Designs, Ltd.of Brooklyn, NY, has infringed both Patent No. 6,962,168, titled CAPACITIVE TOUCH ON/OFF CONTROL FOR AN AUTOMATIC RESIDENTIAL FAUCET and issued by the U.S. Patent Office, and Trademark Registration No. 3,676,837 for the mark TOUCH20, as registered with the U.S. Trademark Office in connection with plumbing products, namely, faucets.

In its complaint, Delta Faucet asserts that Watermark, without a license or any other authorization, is making, using, selling, or offering for sale, faucets that embody the inventions claimed in the ‘168 patent and marketing those products under a confusingly-similar TOUCH27 mark. With regard to the trademark, the plaintiff also brings causes of action for false designation of origin, false advertising, and unfair competition.
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Contact Information
Indiana Intellectual Property: IP Litigation, Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights
  • Seventh Circuit
  • Northern District of Indiana
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Paul B. Overhauser
Overhauser Law Offices, LLC
Greenfield
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Greenfield, IN 46140
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