NPEs lead the charge in record patent disputes in 2015

Non-practising entities (NPEs) accounted for the highest number of patent claims filed in US district courts last year in what was a record year for disputes initiated at both courts and the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB).

According to a report by Unified Patents, an organisation that claims to fight ‘patent trolls’, published yesterday, January 4, NPEs were responsible for 66% of all infringement claims filed in US courts, an increase on last year’s figure of 61%.

High-tech patents accounted for the majority of cases (64%) asserted in US courts.

Following an overall drop in the number of claims filed in 2014 compared to 2013, the year 2015 saw infringement claims asserted at US courts rise by 14% compared with last year.

In 2015, 5,769 cases were filed compared to 5,045 in 2014. More than 3,000 of the claims filed in 2015 were from NPEs.

Currently, the record year for patent claims filed only at US courts is 2013, when the total surpassed 6,000. However, just 796 cases were filed at the PTAB.

In 2015, 1,796 claims were filed at the PTAB on top of the claims filed at courts , an increase of 7% from 2014’s figure of 1,677.

“NPEs are a special legal vehicle whose purpose is to monetise patents they did not file, but rather purchased. Our analysis demonstrates that the vast majority of disputes related to high-tech products are NPEs,” the report said.

Licensing company eDekka was listed as the most prolific filer of patent claims. eDekka hit the headlines last month after a judge at the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas ruled that infringement claims it had filed against more than 200 companies were “ objectively unreasonable”.

The decision opens the doors for parties on the receiving end of such claims to request a reimbursement of their attorneys’ fees from the licensing company.

According to yesterday’s report, eDekka filed 101 claims in 2015.