Long before a patent infringement trial launched last fall, Maitra, representing client Zynga Inc., tried to convince opposing counsel they had no case. "They said claim construction could change things, and I said the only way they could win was if the judge would construe dog for cat," Maitra said. She remembered walking up to the whiteboard in a conference room and drawing a dog, an equal sign and a cat, and then slashing a diagonal line through the equal sign to make her point. Undeterred, plaintiff Segan LLC went forward with claims that many of Zynga's popular games, including Farmville and Zynga Poker, infringed Segan's patent when played over a social networking site such as Facebook. Segan LLC v. Zynga Inc., CV-01315 (N.D. Cal., filed March 21, 2014).
So Maitra tried another tactic, available under a California law that lets a resident defendant seek a bond from an out-of-state plaintiff on a showing that the defendant is likely to prevail. The ploy is rarely used in patent cases, because the outcome of claim construction can be hard to predict. "We were so sure of our substantive position," Maitra said. "We didn't want to get into litigation with folks without a ton of money, so that they spend what they have on litigation and leave us holding the bag for attorneys' fees at the end."
U.S. District Judge Vince G. Chhabria of San Francisco issued a tentative ruling in favor of the bond ? prompting Segan to change course and alter its claims, ducking the bond but putting itself in a worse litigaton position, on the basis of which Chhabria granted summary judgment for Zynga.
"They would have lost either way," Maitra said. The judge granted Maitra's million-dollar fee request and praised "the high quality of [Zynga's] representation." Chhabria also issued a $100,000 sanction order against Segan's counsel, Blank Rome LLP, ruling the firm pursued claims that lacked substantive strength. "They took this on and should have known better," Maitra said.
It was just one case in a busy 2015 that also had Maitra involved in a class action, copyright litigation and the birth of her third child. "I routinely have fun with my cases," she said. "That's why I'm so grateful to do what I do."
? John Roemer
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