Defendant Summary Judgment Rates Have Been Relatively Unaffected by COVID-19
June 10, 2020
RPX data show that the filing of new patent litigation has been steadily increasing despite the spread of COVID-19, but many may be wondering whether the need to argue key issues by phone or videoconference will impact the substantive outcomes of decisions in patent cases already pending. Using summary judgments as an exemplary metric, the impact appears to be fairly muted. While fewer summary judgment decisions were handed down in the first four months of 2020, compared to that same period in 2019, the grant/deny rate differs only insignificantly—with one exception.
First, however, it is worth noting that federal courts made fewer summary judgment decisions overall in the first four months of 2020. The reasons for this decline are inconclusive: while the drop could have been caused by pandemic-related court delays, it could also be a mere artifact of the number of cases previously filed and pending long enough to reach a summary judgment order.
For defendants, not much has changed: Summary judgment motions filed by defendants were granted about a third of the time in the first four months of 2020, similar to the same amount of time in 2019, and in both periods defendant motions were denied roughly 50-60% of the time.
However, it appears that plaintiffs are not seeing the same grant rates that they were in 2019, falling from 50% last year to 31%—closer to the rate seen for defendants. While those data are based on a smaller sample size, as fewer plaintiff motions were adjudicated in the time period considered, this result is nonetheless notable.
Across the country, state and federal court systems, as well as litigants, are adjusting to various constraints now in place due to COVID-19. As the situation evolves, it is worthwhile to consider even at this early date how the economic impact of the global pandemic might change the behavior of key patent actors, including NPEs, operating companies, litigation funders, and courts.
See RPX Insight for detailed, regularly updated analysis of the effects of COVID-19 on the patent space.
