Negotiated Settlement: If the patent owner has a skilled and well-financed firm managing the litigation − one who will not be bullied into submission − the patent owner may be able to avoid a trial and negotiate a settlement involving a licensing arrangement under which the patent owner is paid a royalty for use of the patent. Such an arrangement can also include retroactive payments for prior use of the patent. Most patent infringement lawsuits are settled. According to industry statistics, 70% of patent infringement lawsuits are settled after one year in litigation and after parties have spent one million dollars in litigation costs. Of all filed patent infringement cases only about 4% ultimately reach trial. The rest are either settled or disposed of on summary judgment.

From Law Journal