POM Group Inc v. Schedule A Defendants

CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedApril 16, 2026
Docket2:25-cv-01909
StatusUnknown

This text of POM Group Inc v. Schedule A Defendants (POM Group Inc v. Schedule A Defendants) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
POM Group Inc v. Schedule A Defendants, (W.D. Pa. 2026).

Opinion

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA

POM GROUP INC, Plaintiff, Civil Action No. 2:25-cv-1909 Vv. Hon. William S. Stickman IV SCHEDULE A DEFENDANTS, Defendants.

MEMORANDUM OPINION WILLIAM S. STICKMAN IV, United States District Judge Plaintiff POM Group Inc (“Plaintiff”) has an extensive business presence all over the country, including in Pennsylvania. It is owned and operated by Todd Joseph Steinberg (“Steinberg”), who has developed and commercialized innovative breathing necklaces that enable users to control their breathing and achieve mindfulness.' Plaintiffs products are sold via the official company website □□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□ and through its official storefront on Amazon.com. Plaintiff brought this action because it conducted an online investigation and discovered that the named defendants were selling products that embodied its patents, despite having no license or authorization from Plaintiff. (ECF No. 1). The Court granted a temporary restraining order on December 11, 2025 (ECF No. 29), and then a preliminary injunction against all named defendants on January 5, 2026 (ECF No. 52). On February 10, 2026, Defendant Nos.

' Steinberg applied for a patent for his invention on August 24, 2017. The United States Patent and Trademark Office issued the ‘195 Patent, which is entitled “BREATHING DEVICE AND METHOD OF CONTROLLING BREATHING USING THE DEVICE,” on September 6, 2022. (ECF No. 1-3). Steinberg applied for a patent for the innovative design on August 18, 2017. The United States Patent and Trademark Office and issued the ‘529 Design Patent, which is entitled “BREATHING APPARATUS,” on February 12, 2019. (ECF No. 1-4).

41 (ataccommodate.com) and No. 44 (blaciokamith.com) (collectively, “Defendants”) filed a Motion to Dismiss (ECF No. 66), arguing that the Court lacks personal jurisdiction over them, service was defective, and misjoinder occurred. Defendants also filed a Motion to Dissolve the Preliminary Injunction. (ECF No. 93). For the following reasons, both motions will be denied. I. ANALYSIS A. DEFENDANTS’ MOTION TO DISMISS 1. The Court has personal jurisdiction over Defendants. Defendants argue that the case against them should be dismissed for lack of personal jurisdiction. Specifically, they contend that the only contacts with this forum—test purchases of the allegedly infringing products—are insufficient to confer specific personal jurisdiction. Absent significant contact with Pennsylvania, they argue that the Court cannot maintain personal jurisdiction over them. In support of their motion, Defendants attach the declarations of Defendants’ chief executive officers. (ECF Nos. 66-4; 66-5). Chief Executive Officer Xiaoyan Huang of Suzhou Rouxing Network Technology Co., Ltd., which operates the store identified as Defendant No. 41 (ataccommodate.com), averred: 3. The Company is incorporated and has its principal place of business in People’s Republic of China. The Company’s employees are based in mainland China and operate the Store exclusively in China. The Company has never owned or utilized an office, hired employees, agents or representatives, maintained bank accounts, owned assets or properties, or qualified to do business in Pennsylvania or any other part of the United States. 4. The Store sells unbranded, affordable, and trending consumer goods intended for practical and lifestyle use to buyers worldwide. Neither the Store nor the Company has targeted Pennsylvania residents with their advertisements or directed any marketing efforts or materials, of the allegedly infringing products at Pennsylvania.

(ECF No. 66-4, pp. 1-2). In the same vein, Chief Executive Officer Xurui Li of Husdow Technology Co., Limited, which operates the internet store identified as Defendant No. 44 (blaciokamith.com), averred: 3. The Company is incorporated and has its registered place of business in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China. The Company’s employees are based in mainland China and operate the Store exclusively in China. The Company has never owned or utilized an office, hired employees, agents, or representatives, maintained bank accounts, owned assets or properties, or qualified to do business in Pennsylvania or any other part of the United States. 4, The Store sells unbranded, affordable, and trending consumer goods intended for practical and lifestyle use to buyers worldwide. Neither the Store nor the Company has targeted Pennsylvania residents with their advertisements or directed any marketing efforts or materials, of the allegedly infringing products at Pennsylvania. (ECF No. 66-5, pp. 1-2). Both declarants represent that their respective company has made only one sale to the United States—the alleged test sale into this district. (ECF No. 66-4, p. 2; ECF No. 66-5, p. 2). Defendants contend that their scant contacts with Pennsylvania compel a finding that they are not subject to personal jurisdiction in this Court because they do not have the sufficient minimum contacts with Pennsylvania to allow a court sitting in Pennsylvania to exercise jurisdiction pursuant to the Fourteenth Amendment under the framework set forth by International Shoe Co. v. State of Wash., 326 U.S. 310 (1945) and its progeny. Plaintiff counters that Defendants’ sales into Pennsylvania are enough to establish the requisite contacts to exercise personal jurisdiction over them. In the alternative, Plaintiff contends that jurisdiction is appropriate based on Defendants’ contacts with the United States as a whole, rather than Pennsylvania or any of the several states, through Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(k)(2) (“Rule 4(k)(2)”). The Court agrees.

The Court holds that in the context of this case, Defendants’ contacts with Pennsylvania are not the relevant consideration. Instead of the state-specific minimum contacts under the Fourteenth Amendment, the Court will look to the provisions of Rule 4(k)(2) and the broader concepts of fair play and substantial justice under the Fifth Amendment. Rule 4(k)(2) is the equivalent of a federal long arm statute that extends personal jurisdiction over foreign defendants who are not subject to personal jurisdiction in any of the several states. It provides: (2) Federal Claim Outside State-Court Jurisdiction. For a claim that arises under federal law, serving a summons or filing a waiver of service establishes personal jurisdiction over a defendant if: (A) the defendant is not subject to jurisdiction in any state’s courts of general jurisdiction; and (B) exercising jurisdiction is consistent with the United States Constitution and laws. FED. R. Civ. P. 4(k)(2). In sum, for Rule 4(k)(2) to apply, three prerequisites must be met under the plain language of the rule: “(1) the plaintiff's claim arises under federal law, (2) the defendant is ‘not subject to jurisdiction in any state’s courts of general jurisdiction,’ and (3) ‘exercising jurisdiction is consistent with the United States Constitution and laws.’” King v. Bon Charge, ---F.Supp.3d---, 2025 WL3764039, at *2 (D. Del. Dec. 30, 2025) (quoting Rule 4(k)(2)). If all three prerequisites are met, “then serving a summons establishes personal jurisdiction over that defendant in any federal court.” Jd. Here, there is no dispute that Plaintiffs claims arise under federal law. The complaint asserts two counts alleging that Defendants infringed on its registered U.S. patents— quintessential federal claims. The first prerequisite for personal jurisdiction under Rule 4(k)(2) is met.

Next, the Court must determine whether Defendants are subject to personal jurisdiction in the courts of any state.

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POM Group Inc v. Schedule A Defendants, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/pom-group-inc-v-schedule-a-defendants-pawd-2026.