Speculative Allegations Regarding Operation of Accused Website Doom Patent Infringement Complaint

Mar 16, 2022

Reading Time : 2 min

The patent at issue claimed a system for selling certain types of customer data using a particular type of software. The plaintiff alleged “upon information and belief” that the defendant had partnered with one or more data sellers, had set up a website that used software designed by the one or more data sellers, and that the software infringed the patent.

The court ruled that the complaint failed to state a plausible claim for patent infringement. The court explained that the plaintiff had relied upon a series of assumptions that amounted to alleging the defendant infringed the patent because the website functioned in a way that could be achieved using the software of the patent.

The court rejected the plaintiff’s argument that the complaint was sufficient, finding that the plaintiff had essentially argued that a “form complaint” was all that was needed. The court explained that such complaints were no longer sufficient because Rule 84, the authorizing rule, had been abrogated. The court further explained that a plaintiff need not plead facts showing that every claim limitation is met, but must show how the defendant plausibly infringes the patent by alleging facts that connect the conduct to the claim limitations. Because the plaintiff had only speculated as to how the defendant’s website operated to give access to customer data, and that the method of accessing the data was a critical part of the patent’s claims, the complaint was fatally defective. The court explained that the “sheer possibility” of infringement was insufficient to withstand the motion to dismiss.

The court concluded by recognizing the problem faced by a plaintiff who lacked insight into the defendant’s operations, and who would find it difficult to gain insight without civil discovery. But the court rejected the notion that a case could proceed on assumptions and allegations of similarity between products. Rather, the complaint must allege facts to raise a reasonable expectation that discovery will reveal evidence to support the claim for relief. Therefore, the plaintiff must determine first whether it has a claim.

Practice tip:

The pleading standards place the burden on the plaintiff to investigate and make factual allegations that plausibly, not possibly, show a defendant infringes the patent. A complaint that makes an infringement allegation founded on a series of assumptions may be highly susceptible to dismissal under the federal rules governing the sufficiency pleadings.

DataWidget, LLC v. Rocket Science Group LLC, 20-cv-02961 (N.D. Ga. Mar. 7, 2022)

Share This Insight

Previous Entries

IP Newsflash

March 24, 2025

The Federal Circuit affirmed a Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) final written decision holding that the prior art exception of AIA Section 102(b)(2)(B) does not apply to a prior sale by an inventor when the sale is conducted in private. According to the Federal Circuit, a sale must disclose the relevant aspects of the invention to the public to qualify for the prior art exception of Section 102(b)(2)(B).

...

Read More

IP Newsflash

March 21, 2025

Under the Lanham Act, a plaintiff who prevails on a trademark infringement claim may be entitled to recover the “defendant’s profits” as damages. The Supreme Court in Dewberry Group, Inc. v. Dewberry Engineers Inc. unanimously construed “defendant’s profits” in 35 USC § 1117(a) to mean that only the named defendant’s profits can be awarded, not the profits of other related corporate entities. The Court, however, left open the possibility that other language in § 1117(a) may allow for damages linked to the profits of related entities, if properly raised and supported.

...

Read More

IP Newsflash

March 13, 2025

In a series of rulings on a motion in limine, the District of Delaware recently distinguished between what qualifies as being incorporated by reference and what does not for the purposes of an anticipation defense. In short, a parenthetical citation was held to be insufficient, while three passages discussing a cited reference met the test.

...

Read More

IP Newsflash

March 4, 2025

On February 28, 2025, the USPTO announced that it was rescinding former Director Vidal’s 2022 memorandum on discretionary denials by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. The 2022 memorandum effectively narrowed the application of discretionary denials in cases with parallel district court litigation by specifying instances where discretionary denial could not be issued. With the withdrawal of the memorandum, individual PTAB panels will regain flexibility in weighing discretionary denials. While the long-term effect of that increased flexibility is not yet known, the immediate effect is likely to be a shift towards the discretionary analysis applied by PTAB panels before the issuance of the memorandum.

...

Read More

IP Newsflash

March 3, 2025

A District of Delaware judge recently granted a defendant’s motion to include a patent prosecution bar in its proposed protective order after determining that litigation counsel’s ability to practice before the Patent Office—without ever having represented the plaintiffs at the Patent Office in the past—weighed heavily in favor of the bar.

...

Read More

IP Newsflash

February 12, 2025

The Federal Circuit recently reversed a district court decision that found a patent that did not describe after-arising technology failed to satisfy the written description requirement. In so doing, the Federal Circuit explained that written description and enablement are evaluated based on the subject matter that is claimed, not the products that practice those claims. As a result, the patentee was not required to describe unclaimed, later-discovered features of the accused products despite the broad language in the claims that undisputedly covered the products.

...

Read More

IP Newsflash

January 24, 2025

The District of Delaware recently rejected a patentee’s argument that non-production of an opinion letter from counsel, combined with knowledge of the patent, warranted a finding that defendant induced infringement.

...

Read More

IP Newsflash

January 17, 2025

The District of Delaware recently denied a motion to dismiss a patent infringement complaint involving gene editing technology that sought relief under the Safe Harbor Provision of the Hatch-Waxman Act. Specifically, the court found the patentee’s complaint sufficiently alleged at least some uses of the claimed technology that, when taken as true, were not solely uses of a “patented invention” that were “reasonably related” to an FDA submission.

...

Read More

© 2025 Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP. All rights reserved. Attorney advertising. This document is distributed for informational use only; it does not constitute legal advice and should not be used as such. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Akin is the practicing name of Akin Gump LLP, a New York limited liability partnership authorized and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority under number 267321. A list of the partners is available for inspection at Eighth Floor, Ten Bishops Square, London E1 6EG. For more information about Akin Gump LLP, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP and other associated entities under which the Akin Gump network operates worldwide, please see our Legal Notices page.