SIDEBAR Summer 2017 - 29

SIDEBAR FEATURE

MONTGOMERYBAR.ORG

MBA AND BCBA HOST JOINT EVENT ON
PATENT INFRINGEMENT LITIGATION
By Denis Yanishevskiy, Esq.

T

he Intellectual Property Law Sections of the Montgomery
and Bucks County Bar Associations joined forces
on April 5, 2017 to welcome several judges and
practicing intellectual property attorneys to ruminate on patent
infringement litigation in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
In attendance at the Joseph Ambler Inn in North Wales, PA were
Judge Juan Sanchez, District Judge on the United States District
Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and Judge Thomas
Rueter, Magistrate Judge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania,
to provide their insights on unique issues that arise during patent
infringement litigation, from scheduling to trial. The panel,
which also included Gary Levin, a partner at BakerHostetler LLP,
and Anthony Volpe, a founding partner of Volpe and Koenig,
P.C., discussed special procedures involved in patent infringement
cases, including the use of experts to elucidate complex ideas.
Also discussed were trial preferences, such as jury trials when
disputing mechanical inventions, and bench trials for biochemical
patents based on the patents' relatability to the decision makers.
The panel also deliberated the differences in patent litigation
proceedings in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania as compared
to more popular Rocket Docket districts and the possibility of
local patent rules. Frank Mazzeo, partner at Ryder, Lu, Mazzeo
& Konieczny, LLC, delivered the introductions and served as
moderator for the panel.
The event brought in many practicing attorneys from the
Montgomery and Bucks County Bars who were anxious to
share in the experiences of the litigators on the panel and absorb
the invaluable contributions from the judges who hear and
decide such cases. The panel concluded by fielding a number
of questions from the audience about the current state of
patent infringement litigation and its potential future as patent
infringement litigation only continues to grow.

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The event was organized by Frank Mazzeo, chair of the Bucks
County Bar Association Intellectual Property Law Section, and
Clinton Cusick, partner at Cusick IP, PLLC and chair of the
Montgomery County Bar Association Intellectual Property and
Communications Law Committee. Also instrumental in organizing
the event were U.S. District Court Judge Mitchell S. Goldberg and
U.S. District Court Judge Mark A. Kearney, who unfortunately
could not attend due to prior obligations.
The program was the first joint effort between the intellectual
property sections of the MBA and BCBA, but the opportunity to
hear about such a significant and pervasive issue, especially from
decision makers, is certain to bring practitioners in the patent field
back to the table for a repeat performance.

Appeals
and Briefs
Anthony J. Vetrano

610.265.4441
630 Freedom Business Center Drive, Suite 215
King of Prussia, PA 19406
TonyVetrano@VetranoLaw.com
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SUMMER 2017 29
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of SIDEBAR Summer 2017
