Firm Obtains Rare Trial Victory in Plaintiff-Friendly Eastern District of Texas; Wins on Anticipation and Obviousness.
Foley client Palomar Medical Technologies, Inc., a leading researcher and developer of light-based systems for cosmetic treatments, prevailed in a significant patent infringement suit on October 7, 2008, when a jury in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas found that the company’s products do not infringe Candela Corporation’s U.S. Patent No. 5,810,801 (“‘801 Patent”). In addition, the jury found that all of the claims at issue in ‘801 Patent were invalid over prior art, securing a rare defense victory in the Eastern District.
“We’re thrilled with the jury’s decision to invalidate all of Candela’s remaining claims in the case, based on both anticipation and obviousness,” said John Gutkoski, partner in Foley’s Intellectual Property Litigation and Emerging Technologies Practices and lead counsel for the Palomar case. “The Foley team worked tirelessly to ensure a positive outcome for Palomar in what generally is considered a plaintiff-friendly district, and we’re looking forward to continuing to guide the company through this matter to its conclusion.”
The victories came on the heels of several other successes for the firm during the case. Following favorable summary judgment decisions, just days before the start of trial Candela dropped from the lawsuit (i) its accusations against Palomar’s LuxY, LuxYs, and LuxG handpieces, (ii) two of its additional patents, specifically U.S. Patent Nos. 6,120,497 and 6,659,999, and (iii) all method claims in U.S. Patent 5,810,801.
Consequently, Candela went to trial on September 29th accusing Palomar’s Lux1540, Lux1540z, LuxIR and LuxDeepIR when used with the StarLux 300 or 500 of infringement of the remaining claims of U.S. Patent 5,810,801.
In addition to Gutkoski, who is based in the firm’s Boston office, Foley’s team was led by Debra Nye, senior counsel in its San Diego office and Michelle Flores, associate in the firm’s Boston office. The firm worked throughout the case and tried it with David Beck and his team from Beck, Redden, & Secrest LLP.
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