Greene, Tweed of Delaware, Inc. v. Dupont Dow Elastomers, L.L.C.

202 F.R.D. 418, 2001 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11531, 2001 WL 1046982
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedMay 3, 2001
DocketNo. CIV. A. 00-3058
StatusPublished
Cited by21 cases

This text of 202 F.R.D. 418 (Greene, Tweed of Delaware, Inc. v. Dupont Dow Elastomers, L.L.C.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Greene, Tweed of Delaware, Inc. v. Dupont Dow Elastomers, L.L.C., 202 F.R.D. 418, 2001 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11531, 2001 WL 1046982 (E.D. Pa. 2001).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

WELSH, United States Magistrate Judge.

Plaintiff, Greene, Tweed of Delaware, Inc. (“Green, Tweed”), brought this action alleging that certain activities relating to the manufacture and sale of various products of defendant, DuPont Dow Elastomers, L.L.C. (“DuPont Dow”), infringe United States Patent No. 5,461,107 (“the ‘107 patent”). Plaintiff further contends that DuPont Dow’s infringement was willful, and plaintiff therefore seeks, inter alia, increased damages and attorneys’ fees.

Presently before the Court is Plaintiffs Motion to Compel Documents Identified in Defendant’s Privilege Log and Relating to DuPont Dow’s Opinion of Counsel Upon Which it Intends to Rely to Rebut a Charge of Willful Infringement. Specifically, plaintiff requests that the Court enter an Order compelling DuPont Dow to produce the following documents identified in DuPont Dow’s Second Privilege Log:1 Document Nos. 1-13, 15, 17, 18, 20, 23, 24 and 27.2 See Pl.’s Mot. to Compel Docs, at 1. Furthermore, claiming that certain documents are insufficiently described in the Second Privilege Log, plaintiff requests that the Court compel DuPont Dow to produce the following documents identified in the Second Privilege Log, or in the alternative, produce the documents for “attorneys’ eyes only review” under the oversight of DuPont Dow’s counsel: Document Nos. 19, 22, 25 and 26.3 See Pl.’s Mem. at 26.

In support of the present motion, plaintiff alleges that, in light of the fact that DuPont [420]*420Dow has stated that it intends to rely upon an opinion of counsel that the ‘107 patent is invalid to rebut plaintiffs claim of willful infringement, DuPont Dow has “knowingly and intentionally waived any attorney-client and work product protection as to the subject matter of the opinion.” See Pl.’s Mem. at 4. Plaintiff further contends that DuPont Dow “must produce documents which its own privilege logs have clearly identified as falling squarely within the scope of the waiver.” Id.

In its memorandum in opposition to plaintiffs motion, DuPont Dow acknowledges that it has waived the privilege as to the subject matter of the aforementioned opinion of counsel. However, DuPont Dow responds that plaintiffs motion “seeks the production of documents for which [the] privilege has not been waived.” See Def.’s Mem. at 1.

I. SCOPE OF THE WAIVER

In a patent infringement case, if the patent is willfully infringed, increased damages may be awarded. See 35 U.S.C. §§ 284 and 285; Applied Telematics v. Sprint Corp., No. 94-4603, 1995 WL 567436, at * 1 (E.D. Pa. Sept. 21, 1995)(citing Kelsey-Hayes Co. v. Motor Wheel Cotp., 155 F.R.D. 170, 171 (W.D.Mich.1991)). A charge of willful infringement can be rebutted by proof that the alleged infringer obtained a competent opinion of counsel that the conduct complained of would not infringe the patent in question. Underwater Devices, Inc. v. Monison-Knudsen Co., 717 F.2d 1380, 1390 (Fed.Cir.1983); Applied Telematics, 1995 WL 567436, at *1. “Counsel’s opinion must be thorough enough, as combined with other factors, to instill a belief in the infringer that a court might reasonably hold the patent is invalid, not infringed, or unenforceable.” Ortho Pharmaceutical Corp. v. Smith, 959 F.2d 936, 944 (Fed.Cir.1992). Thus, the alleged infringer’s intent and reasonable beliefs are the primary focus of a willful infringement inquiry. Id.

The general rule regarding the voluntary disclosure of privileged attorney-client communications is that the disclosure waives the privilege as to all other communications on the same subject. Katz v. AT & T Corp., 191 F.R.D. 433, 439 (E.D.Pa.2000). Thus, when a party asserts an advice of counsel defense, it waives the attorney-client privilege with respect to “all communication to and from counsel concerning the transaction for which counsel’s advice was sought.” Applied Telematics, 1995 WL 567436, at * 1 (quoting Saint-Gobain/Norton Indus. Ceramics Corp. v. General Elec. Co., 884 F.Supp. 31, 33 (D.Mass.1995)); see W.L. Gore & Assoc., Inc. v. Tetratec Corp., No. 89-3995, 1989 WL 144178, at *3 (E.D.Pa. Nov.28, 1989).

The waiver principle applies to work product immunity as well as to the attorney-client privilege. Id. Therefore, where a party asserts the advice of counsel as an essential element of its defense, work product immunity, like attorney-client privilege, is waived with respect to the subject of that advice. Id.; see Mushroom Assoc. v. Monterey Mushrooms, Inc., No. 91-1092, 1992 WL 442892, at *3 (N.D. Cal. May 19, 1992).

As both parties acknowledge, the scope of the waiver is narrowly construed in patent eases. Katz, 191 F.R.D. at 440 (citing Saint-Gobain, 884 F.Supp. at 34; Applied Telematics, 1995 WL 567436, at *2). However, “[c]ourts must also keep in mind that issues of willful infringement are fact questions determined from the ‘totality of the circumstances.’ ” Kelsey-Hayes Co., 155 F.R.D. at 171 (quoting Shiley, Inc. v. Bentley Labs. Inc., 794 F.2d 1561, 1568 (Fed.Cir.1986), cert. denied, 479 U.S. 1087, 107 S.Ct. 1291, 94 L.Ed.2d 148 (1987)). Therefore, in this context, courts should fashion their orders compelling the production of documents on a case by case basis consistent with the principles of fundamental fairness. Kelsey-Hayes Co., 155 F.R.D. at 171.

In the present case, to rebut plaintiffs charge that DuPont Dow willfully infringed the ‘107 patent, DuPont Dow states that it obtained and relied on “an oral and later written opinion [of outside patent counsel] stating that the ‘107 patent was invalid under 35 U.S.C. § 102(f) ... and 102(g).”4 [421]*421Neither party disputes that a party asserting the advice of its counsel to rebut a claim of willful infringement waives the attorney-client privilege and work product immunity as to the subject matter of the advice.5 See, e.g., Def.’s Mem. at 4-5; Pl.’s Reply at 5. Where the parties differ is on the scope of the subject matter of the waiver in this case. See Def.’s Mem. at 5-8. In particular, plaintiff argues that the scope of the waiver is the subject matter of invalidity of the ‘107 patent, and DuPont Dow contends that the scope of the waiver should be limited to invalidity of the patent under 35 U.S.C. §§ 102(f) and 102(g) only.

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202 F.R.D. 418, 2001 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11531, 2001 WL 1046982, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/greene-tweed-of-delaware-inc-v-dupont-dow-elastomers-llc-paed-2001.