Litigating Patents in Texas: IPWatchdog LIVE Panel Notes Order Curbing Albright May Soon Be Revoked

During Day two of IPWatchdog LIVE in Dallas, Texas, a panel of attorneys discussed a range of topics related to litigating patents in Texas, particularly the recent order from the Chief Judge for the Western District of Texas, which requires patent cases filed in the Waco Divison to be randomly assigned to one of 12 district court judges. The order was widely understood to be an answer to Senator Tillis’ recent criticism of Judge Alan Albright. The panel began with a discussion of a law review article written by Baylor law student, Matthew Vitale, which analyzed the witness lists of tried cases that were transferred from Texas to either the Northern or Central District of California and the Western District of Washington. The analysis concluded that only single digit percentages of witnesses listed in motions to transfer were ever called to testify. The panelists noted that this finding supports the notion that witness lists contained in motions to transfer are often merely a pretext to obtain a transfer.Read More