Irell secures $102M jury verdict in infringement case against Wells Fargo

Attorneys from Irell & Manella LLP have won a $102 million jury verdict for the United Services Automobile Association in a patent infringement case against Wells Fargo. The award comes two months after Irell and USAA won a $200 million award in a similar case.

The case, tried in federal court in Texas, involved allegations of Wells Fargo infringing on USAA patents of mobile check capture that allows customers to take photos of their checks to deposit them through a mobile phone rather than in a bank. United Services Automobile Association v. Wells Fargo Bank, 2:18-CV-366-JRG (E.D. Tex., filed Aug. 17, 2018).

The Irell team was headed by co-lead counsels Jason G. Sheasby and Lisa S. Glasser. Associates Anthony Q. Rowles, Andrew J. Strabone, Benjamin E. Monnin, Kelsey L. Schuetz and Ingrid M. Haslund Petersen also worked on the case.

"This verdict further validates our position that we created mobile deposit capture technology," USAA vice president of corporate development Nathan McKinley said in a statement Friday. "Wells Fargo, and the rest of the banking industry, has benefited from our technology and we look forward to working with banks to create reasonable and mutually beneficial license agreements. Our goal has always been to be reasonably compensated for the investment in mobile banking innovation we have made on behalf of our members and the military community."

USAA filed the the first lawsuit in June 2018, claimed Wells Fargo infringed on two patents. In August, USAA filed another lawsuit claiming infringement of two more patents stemming from the same technology.

The juries in both cases found the patents were "willfully infringed" upon, according to court documents. The June case ended with a $200 million award, and the August case, handed down Friday, resulted in the $102 million award.

-- Nicole Tyau