Gilstrap ruled that eDekka, a Plano-based, nonpracticing entity and a serial Eastern District plaintiff, pursued an infringement claim on an “obviously weak patent” for the purpose of extracting small “nuisance value settlements” from numerous defendants with no intention of trying their cases.
Gilstrap concluded in his Dec. 17 order in eDekka v. 3Balls.com that eDekka’s case was “exceptional” under 35 U.S.C. §285—a law that allows federal judges to award attorney fees against patent parties who file baseless pleadings.
In 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court issued Octane Fitness v. ICON Health & Fitness, one of two high court patent rulings that gave trial courts a freer hand in cracking down on litigants who filed frivolous claims by giving them more discretion to find cases exceptional under §285. [See “U.S. Supreme Court Hands Discretion to Trial Courts on Attorney Fees in Patent Cases,” Texas Lawyer, April 30, 2014.]
