Endeavor MeshTech Inc. v. Aclara Technologies LLC

Filing 21

MEMORANDUM OPINION. Signed by Judge Gregory M. Sleet on 2/25/2015. (mdb)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF DELAWARE

ENDEAVOR MESHTECH, INC.,
Plaintiff,
V.

ACLARA TECHNOLOGIES LLC,
Defendant.

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C.A. No. 13-1618-GMS

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MEMORANDUM OPINION
I.

INTRODUCTION
On September 27, 2013, the plaintiff Endeavor MeshTech, Inc. ("Endeavor") initiated the

instant action against Adara Technologies LLC ("Adara").

(D.I. 1.)

Endeavor alleges

infringement of U.S. Patent No. 7,379,981 ("the '981 Patent"). (Id.) Presently before the court
is Adara's Motion to Transfer this action to the Eastern District of Missouri, pursuant to 28
U.S.C. § 1404(a). (D.I. 10.) For the reasons that follow, the court will grant Adara's Motion to
Transfer.

II.

BACKGROUND
Endeavor is incorporated under the laws of Delaware. (D.I. 1,

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2.) At the time the

complaint was filed, Endeavor's principal place of business was located in Half Moon Bay,
California (Id.), although Endeavor's briefing addressing the instant motion identified its current
principal place of business as New York, New York. (D.I. 18, Ex. C.) Endeavor is the owner of
the '981 Patent. (D.I. 1, ~ 2.) Adara is a limited liability company organized under the laws of
Ohio, with its principal place of business in Hazelwood, Missouri.

(Id.~ 3.)

III.

STAND ARD OF REVIEW
Under 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a), a district court has "broad discretion to determine, on an

individualized, case-by-case basis, whether the convenience and fairness considerations weigh in
favor of transfer." 1 Jumara v. State Farm Ins. Co., 55 F.3d 873, 883 (3d Cir. 1995). The court
engages in a two-step inquiry. First, the court must determine whether the action could have
originally been brought in the proposed transferee forum. Memory Integrity, LLC v. Intel Corp.,
No. 13-1804-GMS, 2015 WL 632026, at *2 (D. Del. Feb. 13, 2015). If, yes, the court proceeds
to the second step and asks whether transfer would "best serve the interests of justice and
convenience." Id. (quoting Smart Audio Techs., LLC v. Apple, Inc., 910 F. Supp. 2d 718, 724
(D. Del. 2012)). It is the defendant's responsibility to demonstrate that transfer is appropriate at
each step. Jumara, 55 F.3d at 879-80. Guiding the court's analysis is the general principle that,
''unless the balance of convenience of the parties is strongly in favor of defendant, the plaintiff's
choice of forum should prevail." Memory Integrity, 2015 WL 632026, at *2 (quoting Shutte v.

Armco Steel Corp., 431F.2d22, 25 (3d Cir. 197.0)).
IV.

DISCUSSION
A. Propriety of the Transferee Forum
The court may only transfer an action to a "district or division where it might have been

brought." 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a). The parties do not dispute that Endeavor's lawsuit could have
originally been filed in the Eastern District of Missouri. As such, the court proceeds to the
second step in order to analyze the relevant interests at stake.

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The statute provides: "For the convenience of parties and witnesses, in the interest of justice, a district
court may transfer any civil action to any other district or division where it might have been brought or to any
district or division to which all parties have consented." 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a).

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B. Jumara Analysis

The court must consider whether transfer to the Eastern District of Missouri would serve
the interests of convenience and justice. In the Third Circuit, this requires an individualized
analysis, considering the various private and public interests guarded by§ 1404(a). See Jumara,
55 F.3d at 879. To this end, the court does not apply any "definitive formula" but, instead,
considers each of these "Jumara factors" on a case-by-case basis. See id. The private interests
may include:
plaintiffs forum preference as maintained in the original choice;
the defendant's preference; whether the claim arose elsewhere; the
convenience of the parties as indicated by their relative physical
and financial condition; the convenience of the witnesses-but
only to the extent that the witnesses may actually be unavailable
for trial in one of the fora; and the location of books and records
(similarly limited to the extent that the files could not be produced
in the alternative forum).
Id. The public interests may include:

the enforceability of the judgment; practical considerations that
could make the trial easy, expeditious, or inexpensive; the relative
administrative difficulty in the two fora resulting from court
congestion; the local interest in deciding local controversies at
home; the public policies of the fora; and the familiarity of the trial
judge with the applicable state law in diversity cases.
Id. at 879-80. The court addresses each of these "Jumara factors" in tum.
1. Private Interest Factors

a. Plaintiff's Forum Preference
The first private interest factor is the "plaintiff's forum preference as manifested in the
original choice." Jumara, 55 F.3d at 879. Ordinarily, "a plaintiff's choice of a proper forum is a
paramount consideration ... and should not be lightly disturbed." See Shutte v. Armco Steel
Corp., 431 F.2d 22, 25 (3d Cir. 1970). This general rule, however, does not always apply. In

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particular, the court will afford "something less than maximum deference" to the plaintiff's
chosen forum where the plaintiff is not truly at home in the forum state. See In re Link_A_Media

Devices Corp., 662 F.3d 1221, 1223 (Fed. Cir. 2011). Moreover, while a company's situs of
incorporation or organization will often correspond to its "home turf," see Intellectual Ventures I

LLC v. Altera Corp., 842 F. Supp. 2d 744, 759 (D. Del. 2012), there is no bright-line rule. See In
re Link A Media, 662 F.3d at 1224 ("Neither§ 1404 nor Jumara list a party's state of
incorporation as a factor for a venue inquiry. It is certainly not a dispositive fact in the venue
transfer analysis .... "); Audatex N Am., Inc. v. Mitchell Int'l, Inc., No. 12-CV-139 (GMS),
2013 WL 3293611, at *3 (D. Del. June 28, 2013) ("While Audatex is correct that ... a corporate
entity's state of incorporation is part of its 'home turf,' it is not alone dispositive in the
analysis."). Thus, the court must engage in a close analysis of the facts of each case, particularly
''to ensure that the purposes of jurisdictional and venue laws are not frustrated by a party's
attempt at manipulation." See In re Microsoft Corp, 630 F.3d 1361, 1364 (Fed. Cir. 2011).
Endeavor is incorporated under Delaware law, although it conducts no business in the
state. As a result, Endeavor concedes that its choice of forum should not receive "paramount
consideration" but still argues that "heightened" consideration is appropriate. (D.I. 17 at 8-9.)
Aclara asserts that Endeavor's decision to incorporate in Delaware was solely driven by
litigation strategy, and therefore Endeavor's choice of forum should be entitled to little or no
weight. (D.I. 15 at 7-8.) The court does not agree with Adara's position. In Microsoft, the
Federal Circuit discounted the plaintiffs choice of forum where the plaintiff incorporated in the
forum state sixteen days before filing suit against the defendant. In re Microsoft Corp, 630 F.3d
1365. Here, as Aclara recognizes, Endeavor was incorporated "months before initiating its first
round of lawsuits based on the '981 patent."

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(D.I. 15 at 8.)

Thus, the inference of

gamesmanship is considerably weaker. 2 Moreover, even if plans for future litigation influenced
Endeavor's decision to incorporate in Delaware, its choice of forum would still be entitled to
more deference than Adara suggests. See Ithaca Ventures k.s. v. Nintendo of Am. Inc., No. 13824-GMS, 2014 WL 4829027, at *2-3 (D. Del. Sept. 25, 2014) (affording plaintiffs forum
selection "some degree of heightened deference," even where the court found that plaintiff's
"organization [in Delaware] was motivated significantly by the instant litigation"). The court
finds that Endeavor's forum preference is entitled to heightened-but not paramountconsideration.
b. Defendant's Forum Preference

The next private interest factor is Adara's forum preference. See Jumara, 55 F.3d at
879. Adara seeks to litigate in the Eastern District of Missouri, where it has its principle place
of business. Endeavor concedes that Adara has legitimate reasons for preferring the Eastern
District of Missouri. Thus, this factor weighs in favor of transfer, although it is 9f limited
magnitude compared to Endeavor's choice of forum. See Intellectual Ventures, 842 F. Supp. 2d
at 759 ("Under Third Circuit law, [a defendant's] preference for an alternative forum is not given
the same weight as [a plaintiffs] preference."); CNH Am. LLC v. Kinzenbaw, No. 08-945(GMS),
2009 WL 3737653, at *2 (D. Del. Nov. 9, 2009) ("While a defendant's preferred venue is a
factor that the court considers, it is not sufficient to displace the plaintiffs own choice of
venue.").
c.

Whether the Claims Arose Elsewhere

The third private interest factor is "whether the claim arose elsewhere." Jumara, 55 F.3d
at 879. "[A]s a matter of law, a claim for patent infringement arises whenever someone has
2

Aclara also emphasizes that "Endeavor was incorporated only three days before its parent company
acquired the '981 patent." (D.I. 15 at 2, 13.) The court does not consider this fact to be meaningfully probative on
the question of Endeavor's motivations for incorporating in Delaware.

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committed acts of infringement, to wit, 'makes, uses, offers to sell, or sells any patented
invention' without authority." Cellectis S.A. v. Precision Biosci., Inc., 858 F. Supp. 2d 376, 381
(D. Del. 2012) (quoting 35 U.S.C. § 271(a)); see also Smart Audio Techs., LLC v. Apple,
Inc., 910 F. Supp. 2d 718, 730 (D. Del. 2012). Accordingly, where the defendant in a patent
infringement action operates on a national level, this factor is often neutral. 3
The court has recognized, however, that "[t]o some extent, [infringement] claims ar[i]se
where the allegedly infringing products [a]re designed and manufactured." ChriMar Sys., Inc. v.
Cisco Sys., Inc., No. 11-1050-GMS, 2013 WL 828220, at *5 (D. Del. Mar. 6, 2013) (alterations
in original) (quoting Smart Audio Techs., 910 F. Supp. 2d at 730). In other words, this factor
may favor transfer to a district where the defendant's accused infringing products originate.
Adara argues that transfer to the Eastern District of Missouri is warranted because the "accused
products are marketed from Adara's Hazelwood, Missouri headquarters." (D.I. 15 at 8.) The
court is convinced this factor slightly favors transfer, even though, as Endeavor points out, the
accused products are not also designed and manufactured in Hazelwood, Missouri. See Ithaca
Ventures, 2014 WL 4829027, at *3 ("Even though the products are not designed oi manufactured
within the District, they are marketed from Washington.... The court finds this factor weighs
slightly in favor transfer."). Ultimately, the claims have "deeper roots" in the Eastern District of
Missouri than in the District of Delaware, where Adara does not even conduct any sales. See
Verint Sys. Inc. v. CallCopy Inc., No. 13-562-GMS, 2013 WL 5338008, at *2 (D. Del. Sept. 23,
2013). As such, this factor weighs slightly toward transfer.

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In its briefing, Endeavor confusingly argues that this factor is both neutral and that it weighs against
transfer. (D.I. 17 at 14-16.)

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d. Convenience of the Parties

The court must also determine whether the proposed transferee forum would be more
convenient for the parties. See Jumara, 55 F.3d at 879. In this assessment, the court weighs
several considerations, including: "(1) the parties' physical location; (2) the associated logistical
and operational costs to the parties' employees in traveling to Delaware (as opposed to the
proposed transferee district) for litigation purposes; and (3) the relative ability of each party to
bear these costs in light of its size and financial wherewithal." Smart Audio Techs., 910 F. Supp.
2d at 730 (internal quotation omitted). Thus, the court is tasked with assessing the "convenience
of the parties as indicated by their relative physical and financial condition." See Jumara, 55
F.3d at 879.
Endeavor contends that neither District is more convenient than the other, thus making
this factor neutral. According to Endeavor, Adara's physical location is split between Texas and
Missouri, thus reducing the convenience to Adara of litigating in Missouri. But, importantly,
Endeavor fails to articulate any convenience achieved .by litigating in Delaware. Neither Adara
nor Endeavor is "physically located" in Delaware. Sniart Audio Techs., 910 F. Supp. 2d at 730.
Therefore, both parties will be forced to travel, and both will be inconvenienced. Endeavor
makes no argument that its costs to litigate in Delaware are less than those to litigate in Missouri.
In contrast, the Eastern District of Missouri is certainly more convenient for Adara.
Although it recognized in its complaint that Adara's principal place of business is in Hazelwood,
Missouri, Endeavor attempts to argue that Adara's additional operations in Texas put Missouri
on the same level as Delaware in terms of convenience.

(D.1. 17 at 17 ("[P]roceeding in

Missouri instead of Delaware will not spare Adara significant expense given Adara's split
locations ....").) The court cannot agree with this fallacious argument. Simply because the

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Eastern District of Missouri is not the absolute focus of Adara's business does not mean it is not
convenient. See Ithaca Ventures, 2014 WL 4829027, at *5 ("The court will not disregard
convenience where it can be found, simply because the circumstances are not ideal."). It is
unwise and unfair "to subject all parties to an inconvenient forum when a forum exists that
would significantly reduce the burden of at least one of the parties. See id. at *4 (citing In re
Nintendo Co., 589 F.3d 1194, 1198 (Fed. Cir. 2009)).

The Eastern District of Missouri is more convenient to the parties than the District of
Delaware. Thus, this factor favors transfer.
e. Convenience of the Witnesses

The next Jumara factor is "the convenience of the witnesses-but only to the extent that
the witnesses may actually be unavailable for trial in one of the fora." 55 F.3d at 879. The
parties are not aware of any witnesses that would only be available in one district versus the
other. Thus, this factor is neutral.

f

Location ofBooks and Records

Finally, the court accounts for "the location of books and records (similarly limited to the
extent that the files could not be produced in the alternative forum)." Jumara, 55 F.3d at 879.
"In patent infringement cases, the bulk of the relevant evidence usually comes from the accused
infringer. Consequently, the place where the defendant's documents are kept weighs in favor of
transfer to that location." ChriMar, 2013 WL 828220, at *6 (quoting In re Genentech, Inc., 566
F.3d 1338, 1345 (Fed. Cir. 2009)). Adara asserts that documents relating to its accused products
are maintained in the Eastern District of Missouri and therefore argues that transfer is
appropriate. Endeavor again contends that, because not everything is in Hazelwood, this factor
does not weigh in favor of transfer. Again, the court disagrees. While modern technology has

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indeed eased the burden of shipping evidence to distant locations, it nonetheless strikes the court
as wasteful to impose unnecessary costs when there is a more efficient alternative. This factor
weighs slightly in favor of transfer. See Ithaca Ventures, 2014 WL 4829027, at *5 (citing In re
Link_A_Media Devices Corp., 662 F.3d at 1224; In re Nintendo, 589 F.3d at 1998; Smart Audio
Techs., 910 F. Supp. 2d at 732).
2. Public Interest Factors

The parties do not dispute three of the public interest factors: enforceability of the
judgment, public policies of the forum, and the familiarity of the presiding judge with the
applicable law. As such the court excludes these factors from its analysis and considers them
neutral.
a. Practical Considerations
Jumara instructs that courts should look to "practical considerations that could make the

trial easy, expeditious, or inexpensive." 55 F.3d at 879. Because the practical considerations
factor is a "public interest" factor, "at least some attention" must be paid to the public costs of
litigation. ChriMar, 2013 WL 828220, at *7.
Aclara reiterates its same convemence arguments made in the private factor context.
Because Aclara fails to address the broader public costs, the court discounts Adara's argument.
Endeavor, in contrast, argues that the numerous co-pending cases in the District of Delaware
concerning the '981 Patent counsel against transfer. 4 Endeavor argues that, given the number of
lawsuits already filed in Delaware, transferring this case to the Eastern District of Missouri
would "(1) serve to unnecessarily risk duplicative and inconsistent claim constructions in
4
At the time of briefing, there were four co-pending cases filed by Endeavor. Since that time, the court has
transferred one of the cases out of the District. (C.A. 13-1343-GMS.) Another defendant was dismissed with
prejudice by stipulation. (C.A. 13-1627-GMS.) Endeavor has also filed three more recent lawsuits alleging
infringement of the '981 Patent. (C.A. 14-1360-GMS; C.A. 14-1361-GMS; C.A. 14-1363-GMS.) Thus, by the
court's count, there are five cases implicating the '981 Patent-including Endeavor's action against Aclaracurrently pending in the District.

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multiple jurisdictions, (2) foster a loss in judicial economy due to the overlapping infringement
issues related to [accused technology], and (3) will unfairly place increased financial burden on
Endeavor without clear countervailing benefit to Adara." (D .I. 17 at 10--11.)
Although Endeavor appears to raise legitimate concerns, the court finds that the facts of
this case show them to be illusory. First, as Adara points out, Endeavor's predecessor filed
infringement lawsuits covering the '981 Patent in four other districts, prior to Endeavor's lawsuit
against Adara. Endeavor's apparent concern about inconsistent judgment at this stage rings
hollow. Second, while a trial judge may develop a familiarity or expertise over a given patented
technology over time, this benefit is realized only after the cases have progressed past the
preliminary stages. See Semcon Tech, LLC v. Intel Corp., No. 12-531-RGA, 2013 WL 126421,
at *7 (D. Del. Jan. 8, 2013) ("I have no knowledge of the patent or the technology .... Certainly,
if I already had some experience with the patent, it would be an important legitimate concern.
Thus, the 'co-pending litigation' weighs against transfer, but not that strongly."). All of the
cases involving the '981 Patent are still in their infancies; in fact, none of them yet have a
schedule, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 16. Moreover, economies of scale are
better achieved where the various accused products are closely related, which, at this stage, the
court cannot yet discern. See In re Zimmer Holdings, Inc., 609 F.3d 1378, 1382 (Fed. Cir. 2010)
(finding that the "limited relationship between this case and [plaintiff's] other pending suit" did
not weigh against transfer (emphasis added)).
Endeavor's final concern-its private costs--does not meaningfully alter the court's
view. This action has not been consolidated with the co-pending District of Delaware cases, and
independent trials will likely be necessary regardless. GeoTag, Inc. v. Starbucks Corp., No.
2:10-CV-572, 2013 WL 890484, at *6 (E.D. Tex. Jan. 14, 2013) ("The Court will not permit the

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existence of separately filed cases to sway its transfer analysis. Otherwise, a plaintiff could
manipulate venue by serially filing cases within a single district. Allowing a plaintiff to
manufacture venue based on this alone would undermine the principals underpinning transfer
law and the ... America Invents Act.").
Because both parties fail to articulate practical considerations that are actually legitimate

in practice, the court finds this factor weighs minimally against transfer or is neutral.
b. Court Congestion
The court also considers the "relative administrative difficulty in the two fora resulting
from court congestion." Jumara, 55 F.3d at 879.

While the relative size of the districts'

respective caseloads is typically not a sufficient justification for transfer alone, "increased times
from filing to disposition and trial are important factors that do influence the court's calculus."

Ithaca Ventures, 2014 WL 4829027, at *6.

According to the Federal Court Management

Statistics cited by Adara, the median time from filing to trial for civil cases in Delaware is 27.6
months, compared 23.5 months for the Eastern District of Missouri.

(D.I. 15, Ex. 8.) The

median times for all dispositions is 7.6 months for Delaware, compared to 9.4 months for the
Eastern District of Missouri. (Id.) 5
The parties disagree as to the inference to be drawn from these statistics, but according to
the metrics available to the court, the District of Delaware appears more congested than the
Eastern District of Missouri, especially when looking at the most recent figures.

The court

agrees this factor is speculative because whether a matter will proceed to trial is unpredictable.

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The court notes that, in the time since the instant motion was filed and briefed, the statistics have been
updated. See Federal Court Management Statistics, U.S. COURTS (Sept. 2014), http://www.uscourts.gov/Statistics/F
ederalCourtManagementStatistics/district-courts-june-2014.aspx. The more recent figures put Delaware's time to
trial at 31.8 months, versus 24.9 months for the Eastern District of Missouri. The overall disposition times are 9.6
months for Delaware, versus 8.5 months for the Eastern District of Missouri

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See In re Genentech, Inc., 566 F.3d 1338, 1347 (Fed. Cir. 2009). Nonetheless, the court finds

that, to the extent it can be relied upon, this factor weighs slightly in favor of transfer.
c. Local Interest in the Litigation

The court must finally examine "any local interest in deciding local controversies at
home." Jumara, 55 F.3d at 879. "A district does not have a local interest in resolving litigation
simply by virtue of having one of the parties present there. To hold otherwise would be to give
undue weight to the location of the parties, which has already been accounted for in the private
interest factors." Ithaca Ventures, 2014 WL 4829027, at *7. Patent litigation in particular raises
national and even global concerns, thus the notion that a district holds a local interest in the
litigation is almost always unpersuasive. See Helicos Bioscis. Corp. v. Illumina, Inc., 858 F.
Supp. 2d 367, 375 (D. Del. 2012) ("[T]o characterize patent litigation as 'local' undermines the
appearance of neutrality that federal courts were established to provide and flies in the face of the
national (if not global) markets that are affected by the outcome of these cases."); TriStrata
Tech., Inc. v. Emulgen Labs., Inc., 537 F. Supp. 2d 635, 643. (D. Del. 2008) ("[P]atent issues do

not give rise to a local controversy or implicate local interests.").
Endeavor's and Adara's arguments as to why the District of Delaware or the Eastern
District of Missouri, respectively, has a greater interest in resolving the dispute are unconvincing
and do not overcome the general rule that patent cases do not implicate local interests. Thus, this
factor is neutral.
3. Transfer Analysis Summary

The court finds that Aclara has satisfied its burden of showing that the relevant Jumara
factors strongly support transfer. Only Endeavor's forum preference weighs against transfer,
and, as the court explained above, that preference does not warrant maximum deference in this

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case because of Endeavor's minimal connection to the District of Delaware. The remaining
factors weigh strongly in favor of transfer or, at least, are neutral. On balance, in the interests of
convenience and justice, the court finds that transfer is warranted
V.

CONCLUSION

For the reasons discussed above, the court will grant Adara's Motion to Transfer this
action to the Eastern District of Missouri, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a). (D.I. 15)

Dated: February

-1.!., 2015

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