As experienced trial lawyers know, successfully trying or defending a case is all about presenting a compelling, understandable theme and narrative that comports with a judge and jury’s common sense and experience. Juries especially are prone to favor litigants and lawyers they like and case theories they easily understand. That is human nature on display… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Rules of Professional Responsibility
Subscribe to Rules of Professional Responsibility RSS FeedIs it Time for Federal Courts to Stop Exercising Jurisdiction Over Patent Legal Malpractice Claims?
Posted in Conflicts of Interest, Expert Witness, Federal Jurisdiction, Legal Malpractice, Patent Litigation, Patent Prosecution, Rules of Professional ResponsibilityDuring past month when many patent practitioners may have been distracted by the “laws of nature” meaning of the Mayo v. Prometheus decision, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued four precedential rulings confirming the exclusive authority of federal courts to adjudicate patent legal malpractice claims. Only the Supreme Court can alter this… Continue Reading
The Perils of Patent Prosecution Delegation: A Cautionary Tale
Posted in Expert Witness, Legal Malpractice, Patent Prosecution, Rules of Professional ResponsibilityWhat happens when a start-up company (Protostorm) retains a sole practitioner to prepare provisional patent applications, another solo lawyer to prepare the corresponding U.S. non-provisional application, and yet another firm to file the resulting Patent Cooperation Treaty (“PCT”) application? This is getting complicated, right? Add to this mix these salient facts: (1) neither Protostorm nor… Continue Reading
The Ethics of Patent Litigation Forum Shopping
Posted in Rules of Professional Responsibility, Venue SelectionForum-shopping for favorable jurisdictions in which to try or defend a case is second nature to patent litigators. This post analyzes the dissonance between how that practice is sometimes disparaged legislatively and judicially and how such conduct is evaluated through the ethical lens of the Rules of Professional Conduct. Patent legislative history and cases refer… Continue Reading
The Ethical Obligation to Self-Report Patent Legal Malpractice
Posted in Insurance Claims, Legal Malpractice, Rules of Professional ResponsibilitySelf-reporting your errors in prosecuting a patent application or litigating a patent claim is surely not on any lawyer’s “to-do” wish list. Many errors are correctable, stem from legitimate differences of opinion, or are of only minor moment. Part of the art of lawyering is perceiving and correcting errors before they become material impediments to the… Continue Reading
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