United States Federal Circuit

District court order in a patent infringement suit filed by the Australian national science agency against American companies is affirmed where foreign sovereign immunity does not apply under the commercial activities exception, and dismissed where the remaining issues are not appropriate for interlocutory review.

Appellate Information

• Decided 07/14/2006
• Published 07/14/2006

Judges

• MICHEL, Chief Judge., Before MICHEL, Chief Judge, PLAGER, Senior Circuit Judge, and BRYSON, Circuit Judge.

Court

• United States Federal Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• Jeffrey G. Randall, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, of Palo Alto, California, argued for plaintiffs-appellees in appeal 06-1032.   Of counsel on the brief for Intel Corporation was Allan M. Soobert, of Washington, DC. Of counsel on the brief for Dell, Inc. was Stephen E. Taylor, Taylor & Company Law Offices, Inc., of San Francisco, California., Barry K. Shelton, Fish & Richardson, P.C., of Austin, Texas, argued for plaintiffs-appellees in appeal 06-1040.   Of counsel on the brief for Microsoft Corporation were John E. Gartman and Joseph P. Reid, of San Diego, California.   Of counsel on the brief for Hewlett-Packard Company was Gregory G. Lavorgna, Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.   Of counsel on the brief for Netgear, Inc. were James A. DiBoise, Jennifer A. Ochs, and Christopher R. Parry, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, of Palo Alto, California.   Of counsel for Netgear, Inc. was Ryan R. Smith., James M. Wagstaffe, Kerr & Wagstaffe, LLP, of San Francisco, California, argued for defendant-appellant in appeals 06-1032 and 06-1040.   Of counsel on the brief were Daniel J. Furniss and Gary H. Ritchey, Townsend and Townsend and Crew LLP, of Palo Alto, California;  and Nancy L. Tompkins, of San Francisco, California.