Ricoh awarded attorneys' fees after Federal Circuit affirmance of summary judgment win in patent dispute over office and production printer technology
Client(s) Ricoh Company, Ltd. and Ricoh USA, Inc.
On behalf of Ricoh USA, Inc., Jones Day prevailed before the Federal Circuit, obtaining a Rule 36 affirmance of the district court's decisions dismissing two patents for indefiniteness at the Markman stage and granting summary judgment of non-infringement on the five remaining patents. These cases originally involved 19 patents relating to various hardware and software aspects of office and production printer technology. The plaintiff had asserted apparatus, system, and method claims, as well as various theories of infringement, including divided/joint infringement. Jones Day first secured a transfer of the 19-patent case from the District of Nebraska to Ricoh USA's home district, the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The district court later found two patents invalid as indefinite during claim construction and ultimately granted summary judgment of non-infringement on the remaining patents, finding that the plaintiff had not raised a triable issue of fact on any of the remaining asserted claims. Following oral argument before a Federal Circuit panel, the appellate court issued a Rule 36 Order affirming the district court's findings on non-infringement and indefiniteness. Following the affirmance, in April 2023, the district found that this was an "exceptional case" that justified an award of Ricoh's attorneys' fees. Shortly thereafter, plaintiff agreed to dismiss the last remaining case against Ricoh.
Midwest Athletics and Sports Alliance LLC v. Ricoh USA, Inc., Nos. 2-19-cv-00514, -03423 (E.D. Pa.); Appeal No. 21-2340 (Fed. Cir.)
