“Patent Trolls” Legislation Passes House.
As reported by a December 6, 2013 article in The Orange County Register, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Innovation Act having restrictions against “patent trolls,” patent assertion entitles who do not manufacture inventions but sue putative defendant infringer targets. Among other things, the bill modifies the expensive discovery process and would allow judges to force the loser in a patent case to pay the winner’s legal fees.
Trolls by John Bauer. 1915. Library of Congress.
Recent Law Firm Survey Shows Gloomy 2013 Year End And Flat 2014 Spending By Corporate Counsel.
Citi Private Bank’s Law Firm Group polled U.S. law firm leaders, with 72 firms being involved in the poll, about year end 2013 expectations for profits and revenue. 39% of those responding expected 2013 profits to decrease or remain flat; 42% predicted growth of less than 5%; and 19% estimated 5-10% growth.
BTI Consulting Group interviewed 300 corporate legal decision-makers for its BTI Litigation Outlook 2014. The group found such corporate legal departments expect only a .1% growth in 2014 legal spending despite a doubling of litigation matters seen for the coming year. A copy of this report is available from the ABA Journal website for you those of you who can access the site.