Intellectual Property Law

Sue L. Robinson: The Overlapping Worlds of Science and Litigation

By Karen E. Keller, Andrew A. Lundgren et al.

In a recent opinion, District Judge Sue L. Robinson commented on the nature of expert testimony in patent cases. In particular, the Court highlighted the important distinction between scientific "truth" and the role of the judiciary in the decidedly non-scientific legal system:

"[Expert] Matzger's testimony is, of course, only reliable to the extent [Expert] Bates's data (and Bates's testimony thereupon) is also reliable. That two scientists at the top of their field could disagree on their reading of 'hard' data is, unfortunately, neither surprising nor a rare occurrence in this court. The court is not tasked with determining the scientific 'truth' with respect to infringement, to the extent one exists, only weighing the parties' evidence and resolving their business dispute according to established burdens of proof. Consequently, the court does not deem Bates's evidence more or less credible insofar as Matzger also relied upon it but ultimately disagreed as to its import."

For those of you interested in the Court's findings in the companion infringement action, click here.

Cephalon Inc. v. Watson Pharma. Inc., C.A. No. 09-724-SLR (D. Del. Mar. 24, 2011) (Robinson, J.).

Full post as published by Delaware IP Law Blog on March 31, 2011 (boomark / email).