Moto named in bulk tech patent suits

A California inventor who filed 24 separate patent infringement cases from March 16 to May 14 will have to coordinate 24 different trials, according to an Aug. 3 order from a federal judge in San Francisco.

Gregory Bender of San Jose, California, has accused a wide range of technology companies of infringing his patent 5,103,188. The patent, which covers an electric circuit known as a "buffered transconductance amplifier," was issued in April 1992.

The companies that he sued during the three-month period include Seagate Technology, LG Electronics Inc., AT&T Inc., Nokia OYJ and Motorola Inc. The suits were all filed in federal court in the Northern District of California.

U.S. District Judge William Alsup, in his Aug. 3 ruling, said that "although the same patent is asserted in all 24 cases, these cases are not related." The cases involve different defendant companies with different products, he said.

Noting that some issues would overlap, he said there would still be a "plethora of different infringement and damage issues."

The judge said he'd be willing to hold "prompt and coordinated" hearings on the scope of the patent and its validity.

Lawyers whose clients want to participate in these joint hearings will have to agree to be bound by all the rulings and verdicts -- subject to appeal --- and will have to agree to join "in single consolidated submissions," according to Alsup.

Bender is represented by David Noel Kuhn of Piedmont, California.

The case in which Alsup made his ruling is Bender v. Exar Corp., 3:09-cv-01140, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California (San Francisco).