Massachusetts
is home to one of America’s chief innovation hubs. Yet, historically, the
District of Massachusetts has seen relatively few patent cases when compared to
other high-tech venues around the country. While there are several reasons that
may explain this dearth of patent cases, factors many have pointed to include
that a large number of patent cases filed in the district ended up taking 3 or
more years to reach trial. Additionally, patent case schedules issued in the
district were often criticized as slowly paced and lacking in certainty. And so
plaintiffs looking for a quick and certain resolution tended to file their
cases elsewhere.
Change
appears to be here, however, as effective June 1, 2018, the District of
Massachusetts amended its Local Rule 16.6 to provide for mandatory patent rules
and scheduling. The prior local rules suggested a schedule for patent
proceedings that parties could use in their scheduling orders but left it up to
the parties to agree to certain deadlines in the proposed order. The amended
rules, however, require that the assigned judge set a trial date that is within
2 years of the initial scheduling conference (a court hearing that usually
takes place within months of the complaint filing), and set certain other patent-specific
deadlines on dates calculated from the initial scheduling conference date.
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