Re: Is the court saying we can't go after companies for past infringement?
Not at all. I have posted several good stories about using patent recertification as a legal defense. Infringer can use this to 1: try to avoid paying TPL our fees and 2: attempt to avoid paying treble damages (3xthe money). It will be for the court to decide.
The first four reexaminations were consolidated into one reexamination by the examiner. While these four combined reexaminations were running a fifth reexamination was requested. To navigate the questions raised by the first reexamination TPL amended the 336 patent. Since the definition of the 336 has changed it has also changed the dynamics of the Acer case. Acer filed suit against TPL before the 336 was amended in the first reexamination. That means the evidence in regards to the infringement has changed and the court still has to decide if they infringe. How can they decide if they are infringing if the actual 336 patent is changing? They can’t.
Now the new 336 reexamination also fell upon the same fate. They have tried to claim our new definition of the 336 from the previous examination but they couldn’t because the first reexamination was not complete at the time of the filling. That means that the 336 patent now exists on two different time tables. With the new 336 reexamination request we have until January 2010 to make amendments to the portion of the reexamination request allowed by the examiner.
In regards to the older reexamination, the new definitions of the 336 have not been included in the newest reexamination. The big guys will request another reexamination based on the new 336 definition. Will the examiner consider it, I don’t know? If TPL tries to change the definition in the new reexamination before the January deadline I suspect that the other half of the 336 will get reexamined as well.
I am not an attorney any correction are welcomed