Judge Gilstrap Oversaw the Most New Patent Litigation in Q2 2026

Judge Gilstrap was additionally involved in some notable developments in prior patent cases in Q2: In April, he issued a bench trial order that dismissed litigation filed by Headwater Research LLC against Verizon, ruling that the asserted patents were not enforceable under the doctrine of implied waiver. Judge Gilstrap additionally presided over a trial that culminated in the quarter’s top damage award, returned on June 19 for funded plaintiff Aspen Networks, Inc. against the same defendant.

For further coverage of those outcomes, as well as an overview of other verdicts and defense wins in Q2, see here.

Judge Gilstrap also issued a significant ruling this past quarter in a case in which the US government advocated for the availability of injunctive relief in NPE suits. In a statement of interest (SOI) filed in litigation from NPE plaintiff Collision Communications, Inc., which had sought a permanent injunction against Samsung, the US Department of Justice and the USPTO argued that such plaintiffs can establish the requisite “irreparable harm” under the US Supreme Court’s 2006 decision in eBay v. MercExchange because of the difficulty of valuing patents and calculating patent damages. On May 18, Judge Gilstrap found that that Collision had established irreparable harm—agreeing with the government as to valuation and damages, while rejecting the plaintiff’s attempt to establish a broader presumption of harm. However, Judge Gilstrap denied its request for an injunction, finding that the balance of hardships and the public interest, as also contemplated by eBay, weighed against the plaintiff. Collision has since appealed that result to the Federal Circuit.

Further background on this decision and related government SOIs on injunctive relief can be found here.

See RPX’s second-quarter review for more on venue and other trends shaping patent litigation risk so far this year.