Cap Export, LLC v. Zinus, Inc.

District Court, C.D. California·Decided June 2, 2021·No. 2:16-cv-00371·Unknown

Opinion

O CAP EXPORT, LLC, a California Case No. 2:16-cv-00371-JWH (MRWx) Limited Liability Company, Plaintiff, MEMORANDUM OPINION AND v. PARTIAL SUMMARY JUDGMENT ZINUS, INC., a California corporation; [ECF No. 318] and MOTION FOR and SUMMARY JUDGMENT RE DOES 1 through 10, inclusive, INVALIDITY, ETC. [ECF No. 325] Defendants. ZINUS, INC. a California corporation, Counterclaimant, v. CAP EXPORT, LLC, a California Limited Liability Company, Counterdefendant. ZINUS, INC., a California corporation, Third-Party Claimant, v. ABRAHAM AMOUYAL, an individual; and 4MODA CORP., a California corporation, Third-Party Defendants. This action arises from a patent dispute concerning ready-to-assemble bed frames where the components of the frame fit inside the headboard and ship in a single box, nicknamed a “bed-in-a-box.” Defendant Zinus, Inc. holds U.S. Patent No. 8,931,123 (the “’123 Patent”) covering such a bed frame. In 2015, Zinus accused Plaintiff Cap Export, LLC of infringement on account of Cap Export’s sale of products that are allegedly covered by the ’123 Patent. Cap Export responded by commencing this declaratory relief action. Zinus filed a counterclaim and a third-party complaint for patent infringement against Cap Export and its principal, Third-Party Defendant Abraham Amouyal. In the years that followed, the parties litigated this case extensively, which included the following procedural highlights: (1) multiple motions for summary judgment; (2) the Federal Circuit’s resolution of an appeal concerning this Court’s order on one such motion; (3) the parties’ settlement, through which Cap Export agreed to pay damages to Zinus arising from Cap Export’s purported infringement; and (4) this Court’s entry of a stipulated judgment based upon that settlement. After Cap Export uncovered clear and convincing evidence that Zinus’s patent expert and former president, Colin Lawrie, made several material misrepresentations during his deposition—including Lawrie’s testimony regarding his lack of knowledge of prior art bed frames and his business relationship with an entity that purchased bed frames apparently similar to the frame eventually claimed in the ’123 Patent—the Court set aside that stipulated judgment.1 Based upon these revelations, the Court allowed additional

1 See Order Granting Cap Export’s Motion to Set Aside Judgment Pursuant to FRCP 60(b)(3) (the “Rule 60 Order”) [ECF No. 295] (Judge Steven V. Wilson, presiding) (providing detailed case history and granting Rule 60(b)(3) motion to set aside judgment based upon fraud, misrepresentation, or misconduct by opposing party). On May 5, 2021, in a published decision, the discovery and permitted the parties to file renewed motions for summary judgment. Before the Court are two such motions. First, Cap Export and Abraham Amouyal seek summary judgment of patent invalidity, non-infringement, inequitable conduct, and unenforceability.2 Second, Zinus seeks partial summary judgment that Colin Lawrie did not commit inequitable conduct.3 After considering the papers filed in support and in opposition of the Motions, including supplemental briefing,4 and after conducting a hearing on the Motions on February 18, 2021, for the reasons stated below, the Court will GRANT in part and DENY in part Cap Export’s Motion for Summary v. Zinus, Inc., ___ F.3d ___, No. 2020-2087, 2021 WL 1773696, at *1 (Fed. Cir. May 5, 2021) (affirming because “Lawrie, Zinus’s president and expert witness, misrepresented his knowledge of highly material prior art,” this Court “properly declined to condone such conduct,” and this Court “did not abuse its discretion in granting the motion to vacate the judgment under Rule 60(b)(3)”). 2 See Cap Export, LLC and Abraham Amouyal’s Mot. for Summ. J. of Patent Invalidity, Non-Infringement, Inequitable Conduct, and Unenforceability (the “Cap Export MSJ”) [ECF No. 325]. 3 See Zinus Inc.’s Mot. for Part. Summ. J. That Colin Lawrie Did Not Commit Inequitable Conduct (the “Zinus PMSJ”) [ECF No. 318]. 4 To resolve these Motions, in addition to the Court’s prior orders in this case, the Court has considered the following papers and all of their respective attachments: (1) the Compl. [ECF No. 1]; (2) the Answer and Countercl. [ECF No. 38]; (3) the First-Am. Third-Party Compl. [ECF No. 179] and (4) the Answer thereto [ECF No. 337]; (5) the Cap Export MSJ [ECF No. 325], (6) the Opp’n thereto (the “Zinus Opposition”) [ECF No. 363], and (7) the related Reply (the “Cap Export Reply”) [ECF No. 368]; and (8) the Zinus PMSJ [ECF No. 318], (9) the Opp’n thereto [ECF No. 364], and (10) the related Reply [ECF No. 367]. At the hearing on this matter, Zinus requested supplemental briefing, and the Court granted its request. See Order Re Supplemental Briefing on Motions for Summary Judgment [ECF No. 373]. After the parties filed their supplemental briefs, see Zinus Suppl. Br. [ECF Nos. 375]; Cap Export Supp. Br. [ECF No. 376], Zinus filed an Ex Parte Application to Strike Cap Export’s Supplemental Brief [ECF No. 377]. Cap Export filed an Opposition [ECF No. 378]. The Court declined to strike the brief, but, “in the interest of providing a complete record for any appeal that may ultimately arise in this matter, and to ensure that Zinus has a full and fair opportunity to present its arguments on the underlying cross-motions for summary judgment,” the Court “allow[ed] Zinus to file a reply to Cap Export’s responsive supplemental brief,” See Order on Ex Parte Application [ECF No. 379]. Accordingly, Zinus filed an Judgment. Specifically, the Court will grant the Motion on the issue of patent invalidity and will deny it as moot on the issues of infringement and inequitable conduct. The Court will DENY as moot Zinus’s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment on the issue of inequitable conduct. After those rulings, the only remaining claim for relief in the case is Zinus’s unfair business practices claim under Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17200, which appears in both Zinus’s counterclaim and its third-party claim. The Court will decline to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over this sole remaining state-law claim. Summary judgment is appropriate when there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a). When deciding a motion for summary judgment, the Court construes the evidence in the light most favorable to the non-moving party. Barlow v. Ground, 943 F.2d 1132, 1135 (9th Cir. 1991). However, “the mere existence of some alleged factual dispute between the parties will not defeat an otherwise properly supported motion for summary judgment; the requirement is that there be no genuine issue of material fact.” Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 247–48 (1986) (emphasis in original). The substantive law determines the facts that are material. Id. at 248. “Only disputes over facts that might affect the outcome of the suit under the governing law will properly preclude the entry of summary judgment.” Id. Factual disputes that are “irrelevant or unnecessary” are not counted. Id. A dispute about a material fact is “genuine” “if the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party.” Id. Under this standard, the moving party bears the initial burden of informing the district court of the basis for its motion and identifying the portions of the pleadings and record that it believes demonstrate the absence of When the non-moving party

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