Juniper wins defense verdict in ongoing patent infringement case

SAN FRANCISCO -- In the first of what could be a series of trials in a patent infringement lawsuit, attorneys for Juniper Networks Inc. won a defense verdict in a claim by Finjan Inc.

A federal jury in San Francisco found Juniper did not infringe malware patent '494.

Attorneys for Finjan sued last year, accusing Juniper of infringing seven patents. Finjan Inc. v. Juniper Networks Inc., 17-CV5659 (N.D. Cal., filed Sept. 29, 2017).

Instead of trying all of the patent disputes in a single trial, U.S. District Judge William Alsup instructed attorneys to choose what they considered their strongest claims or defenses.

In August, Alsup granted summary judgment in favor of Juniper, ruling the company did not infringe a patent designed to protect against malicious 'downloadables' that can be used to deliver code without a user's knowledge.

The '494 patent case went to trial last week. On Friday, the jury rejected a patent claim by Finjan after deliberating three hours.

Five other patents remain unresolved along with other claims in the first two patents.

A team of Irell & Manella LLP attorneys led by partner Jonathan Kagan represents Juniper.

Kagan declined to comment, and a Juniper spokesperson could not be reached.

Paul Andre, a partner with Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP who represents Finjan, could not be reached. Finjan spokeswoman Vanessa Winter declined to comment.

In a news release, the company said it would consider an appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit once all post-trial matters have been decided.