Tafas v. Dudas et al

Filing 84

Opposition to Plaintiff Dr. Tafas's 80 MOTION to Compel filed by Jon Dudas, The United States Patent and Trademark Office. (Wetzler, Lauren) Modified on 11/28/2007 to reflect the title of docket entry(klau, ).

Tafas v. Dudas et al

Doc. 84

Case 1:07-cv-00846-JCC-TRJ

Document 84

Filed 11/26/2007

Page 1 of 6

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA Alexandria Division TRIANTAFYLLOS TAFAS, Plaintiff, v. JON W. DUDAS, et al., Defendants. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )

Civil Action No. 1:07cv846(L) (JCC/TRJ)

CONSOLIDATED WITH SMITHKLINE BEECHAM CORPORATION, et al., Plaintiffs, v. JON W. DUDAS, et al., Defendants. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )

Civil Action No. 1:07cv1008 (JCC/TRJ)

DEFENDANTS' OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFF DR. TAFAS'S MOTION TO COMPEL Defendants Jon W. Dudas and the United States Patent and Trademark Office (collectively "USPTO") hereby oppose "Plaintiff Dr. Tafas's Motion to Compel," Dkt. No. 80, which seeks to compel (1) a privilege log on the administrative record, and (2) inclusion in the administrative record of all deliberative materials. Tafas's motion is a redundancy, and it contravenes the Court's clear directive on briefing at the November 16, 2007 hearing. Prior to Tafas filing this motion, the parties had fully briefed the question of whether the USPTO was required to produce a privilege log. Pursuant to this

Dockets.Justia.com

Case 1:07-cv-00846-JCC-TRJ

Document 84

Filed 11/26/2007

Page 2 of 6

Court's directive at the hearing, Tafas filed a supplemental brief on the privilege log issue, Dkt. No. 73, and the USPTO filed its response, Dkt. No. 74. See Dkt. No. 74, Ex. 1, p. 46 ("I would like something from plaintiffs by close of Monday. I would like something from defendants by close of business Tuesday."). GlaxoSmithKline ("GSK") filed what it styled a "Motion for an Entry of an Order Requiring Defendants to Submit a Privilege Log,"1 Dkt. Nos. 70-72, which the USPTO opposed in its response to Tafas's filing. Dkt. No. 73. Tafas has now apparently decided that he liked GSK's approach better and has tried to mimic it, ostensibly "to assure the record in this consolidated action is complete and that there is a procedural vehicle in place for the Court to order the previously requested relief." Motion to Compel, p. 2. In view of the amount of paper Plaintiffs dumped on this Court and the USPTO on the eve of Thanksgiving, these excuses merit no response. The USPTO respectfully relies on its prior brief on the privilege log issue to oppose Tafas's newest request for a privilege log. See Dkt. No. 74. With respect to the second relief sought ­ inclusion of all deliberative materials in the administrative record ­ the USPTO again respectfully relies on the discussion in its privilege log brief of why deliberative materials do not belong in an administrative record and why requiring even just a privilege log of those documents is an undue burden. See Dkt No. 74, pp. 4-8. The USPTO has further addressed the impropriety of including deliberative materials in an administrative record in the omnibus memorandum that it has submitted contemporaneously with this opposition, see Dkt. No. 83, pp. 6-8. For the reasons stated herein and in the above-referenced memoranda, the Court should

The Court should strike any reply memoranda that GSK or Tafas attempts to file in connection with the privilege log issue on the grounds that it evades the Court's briefing order at the November 16, 2007 hearing. 2

1

Case 1:07-cv-00846-JCC-TRJ

Document 84

Filed 11/26/2007

Page 3 of 6

deny "Plaintiff Dr. Tafas's Motion to Compel." Respectfully submitted, CHUCK ROSENBERG UNITED STATES ATTORNEY

By:

/s/ LAUREN A. WETZLER RALPH ANDREW PRICE JR. R. JOSEPH SHER Assistant United States Attorneys Attorneys for All Defendants Justin W. Williams U.S. Attorney's Building 2100 Jamieson Avenue Alexandria, Virginia 22314 Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone] [e-mail]

OF COUNSEL: James A. Toupin General Counsel Stephen Walsh Acting Deputy General Counsel and Solicitor William Covey Deputy General Counsel William G. Jenks Janet A. Gongola William LaMarca Associate Solicitors Jennifer M. McDowell Associate Counsel United States Patent and Trademark Office

3

Case 1:07-cv-00846-JCC-TRJ

Document 84

Filed 11/26/2007

Page 4 of 6

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I hereby certify that on November 26, 2007, I electronically filed the foregoing with the Clerk of the Court using the CM/ECF system, which will send a notification of such filing (NEF) to the following: Joseph Dale Wilson, III Kelley Drye & Warren LLP Washington Harbour 3050 K Street NW Suite 400 Washington, DC 20007 Email: [e-mail] Joanna Elizabeth Baden-Mayer Collier Shannon & Scott PLLC 3050 K St NW Suite 400 Washington, DC 20007-5108 E-mail: [e-mail] Counsel for Plaintiff Triantafyllos Tafas, 1:07cv846 Elizabeth Marie Locke Kirkland & Ellis LLP 655 15th St NW Suite 1200 Washington, DC 20005 Email: [e-mail] Craig Crandell Reilly Richard McGettigan Reilly & West PC 1725 Duke St Suite 600 Alexandria, VA 22314 Email: [e-mail] Daniel Sean Trainor Kirkland & Ellis LLP 655 15th St NW Suite 1200 Washington, DC 20005 Email: [e-mail]

4

Case 1:07-cv-00846-JCC-TRJ

Document 84

Filed 11/26/2007

Page 5 of 6

Counsel for Plaintiffs SmithKline Beecham Corp. d/b/a GlaxoSmithKline, SmithKline Beecham PLC, and Glaxo Group Limited, d/b/a GlaxoSmithKline

Thomas J. O'Brien Morgan, Lewis & Bockius 1111 Pennsylvania Ave, NW Washington, DC 20004 Email: to'[e-mail] Counsel for Amicus American Intellectual Property Lawyers Association Dawn-Marie Bey Kilpatrick Stockton LLP 700 13th St NW Suite 800 Washington, DC 20005 Email: [e-mail] Counsel for Amicus Hexas, LLC, The Roskamp Institute, Tikvah Therapeutics, Inc. James Murphy Dowd Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale & Dorr LLP 1455 Pennsylvania Ave NW Washington, DC 20004 Email: [e-mail]

Counsel for Putative Amicus Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America Randall Karl Miller Arnold & Porter LLP 1600 Tysons Blvd Suite 900 McLean, VA 22102 Email: [e-mail] Counsel for Putative Amicus Biotechnology Industry Organization Rebecca M. Carr Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP 5

Case 1:07-cv-00846-JCC-TRJ

Document 84

Filed 11/26/2007

Page 6 of 6

2300 N Street, NW Washington, DC 20037 [e-mail] Scott J. Pivnick Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman 1650 Tysons Boulevard McLean, Virginia 22102-4856 [e-mail] Counsel for Amicus Elan Pharmaceuticals, Inc. /s/ LAUREN A. WETZLER Assistant United States Attorney Justin W. Williams U.S. Attorney's Building 2100 Jamieson Avenue Alexandria, Virginia 22314 Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone] [e-mail] Counsel for All Defendants

6