SAN FRANCISCO (BRAIN) — A U.S. District Court judge in California on Monday ordered that Fox Factory's patent infringement case, filed here in February 2016, be dismissed and moved to a Colorado court. The new location is roughly equidistant between SRAM's headquarters in Chicago and Fox's in California. SRAM also has facilities in Colorado Springs and both companies have told the court they are amenable to moving the case to the state.
Fox is charging that SRAM, in its RockShox products, has infringed on several suspension-related patents, including at least one patent that Fox acquired when it purchased the assets of Marzocchi. SRAM has also sued Fox, in an Illinois court, alleging that Fox, in its Race Face products, infringes on SRAM's patents for its X-Sync chainring chain retention features. SRAM has reached licensing agreements or other settlements with several other component makers over the same issue. There have been no court filings in that case since Fox requested a U.S. Patent Office ruling on validity of the relevant patent in early 2016.
In the case filed by Fox, SRAM has asked the court twice to move the case out of California, arguing that it was an improper venue because it does not have headquarters there. U.S. District Judge William Orrick had denied SRAM's motions; in the latest he said that although current case law supported SRAM's position, the company waited too long to request the change. But he said a late 2017 federal circuit decision in the case In re Micron Technology supported SRAM's position.
"Neither party is at fault for the current situation," Orrick wrote in his order. "Fox had a good-faith belief that bringing the cases in this venue was proper, and SRAM challenged that contention as soon as it became clear that Fox's belief was wrong. In this scenario, transferring these cases to a location mutually agreeable to the parties would minimize the prejudice to all."
A trial is currently scheduled for November.
Related stories:
- Court denies SRAM motion to move Fox patent case July 18, 2017
- Fox and SRAM suits continue in two states as costs mount March 1, 2017
- Fox Factory's bike sales grow as legal costs mount March 1, 2017
- Fox buys Marzocchi mountain bike assets Oct. 19, 2015
- SRAM licenses X-Sync design to Accell and Chromag Jan. 8, 2014
