Worlds Inc (WDDD)

[LouisDesyjr]

Additional on Doctrine of Laches

Laches Remains a Defense to Patent Infringement
November 2015:
http://www.bakerbotts.com/ideas/publications/2015/11/ip-report-laches-remains-a-defense

Laches acts as an equitable defense to patent infringement when a patentee delays bringing an infringement suit.

A presumption arises that the delay is unreasonable and inexcusable when the patentee delays bringing suit for more than six years after the patentee knew or should have known of the infringer’s activity.

Under the Federal Circuit’s longstanding precedent, a finding of laches only restricted recovery of pre-suit damages.

In summary, if there was a long delay in filing a patent lawsuit, damages may be limited to only the time from the filing of the lawsuit.

In the situation with WDDD, if WDDD does not bring a lawsuit against infringing companies within six years of the infringement, or when it should have known of the infringement, then damages in those lawsuits would only be available from the date the lawsuit was filed and forward. i.e. No look back over the past six years.

If too much time goes by or has gone by, then no damages will be possible against other infringing companies.

This is what happened in VRNG vs GOOG lawsuit.

ATVI lawsuit should not be effected by this problem.

Louis J. Desy Jr.