SUPREME COURT LIMITS “FORUM SHOPPING” IN PATENT-INFRINGEMENT LAWSUITS
June 23, 2017
The Supreme Court of the United States issued a decision in TC Heartland LLC v. Kraft Food Group Brands, LLC on May 22, 2017 that will limit “forum shopping” in patent-infringement lawsuits against a variety of corporations. Prior to the Heartland case, a corporation could be sued for patent infringement virtually anywhere in the United States where its product was sold, even if the company did not have an office or retail presence in that state. As a result, certain jurisdictions became popular for patent-infringement cases. The Supreme Court’s Heartland ruling will end this practice. Corporations can now only be sued in patent-infringement cases (1) in the state in which it is incorporated or (2) in a state where it sells its products and maintains a regular and established place of business, such as an office or store. The mere sale of a product in a state, if a corporation has no presence there, will no longer make that company subject to a patent-infringement lawsuit in that state. The practical effect of the Heartland decision will be that certain “plaintiff haven” forums will see a decline in patent-infringement lawsuits while other forums where many corporations are incorporated, such as Delaware, will likely see an increase.
If you have any questions, please contact Evelyn Sahr (esahr@eckertseamans.com, 202-659-6622) or Drew Derco (dderco@eckertseamans.com, 202-659-6665).
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