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Case 2:18-cv-00514-JRG Document 32 Filed 04/01/19 Page 1 of 5 PageID #: 259
`
`IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
`FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS
`MARSHALL DIVISION
`
`
`UNILOC 2017 LLC,
`
`
`Plaintiff,
`
`v.
`
`
`AT&T SERVICES, INC. and AT&T
`MOBILITY LLC,
`
`
`
`
`
`Defendants.
`
`
`Case No. 2:18-cv-00514-JRG
`
`
`Jury Trial Demanded
`
`
`
`









`
`
`
`JOINT MOTION FOR ENTRY OF
`PROPOSED DISCOVERY ORDER
`
`
`
`
`
`Pursuant to the Court’s Order of February 26, 2019 (Dkt. 15) Plaintiff Uniloc 2017 LLC
`
`(“Uniloc”) and Defendants AT&T Services, Inc. and AT&T Mobility LLC (“AT&T”) hereby
`
`jointly submit a Proposed Discovery Order, attached as Exhibit A. The parties have conferred and
`
`have agreed to all terms of a proposed Discovery Order except terms regarding:
`
`• ¶ 5(b)(i): The number of hours for party depositions; and
`
`• ¶ 12(f): The number of prior art references Defendants may identify in connection
`
`with the Court’s Model Order Focusing Patent Claims and Prior Art to Reduce Cost
`
`(General Order No. 12-20).
`
`Accordingly, the parties hereby submit the attached proposed Discovery Order with
`
`competing provisions regarding the above topics for consideration by the Court. For ease of
`
`reference, the disputed language is indicated in bold italics.
`
`
`
`
`
`

`

`Case 2:18-cv-00514-JRG Document 32 Filed 04/01/19 Page 2 of 5 PageID #: 260
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`
`
`Plaintiff’s Positions
`
`Plaintiff does not believe the parties should be presenting argument, but Defendants refused
`
`to submit this statement without argument included.
`
`While the parties agree on a 100 hour limit in the aggregate, Defendants’ limit is a false
`
`limit because it caps depositions of parties at 40 hours assuming 30(b)(6) deposition hours also
`
`count as hours of party employees. Thus, what Defendants are really saying is 40 hours for party
`
`depositions and 60 hours for third parties. The Federal Rules do not impose limits on party
`
`depositions versus third party depositions and no such division should be adopted here. Given that
`
`there are three unrelated patents-in-suit, 100 total hours for fact depositions is reasonable for this
`
`case.
`
`With respect to prior art references, Defendants seek to chart more prior art references than
`
`are permitted in the Court’s Model Order Focusing Patent Claims and Prior Art to Reduce Cost
`
`(General Order No. 12-20). Given there are only 13 asserted claims total (which is far less than
`
`the 32 claims allowed at the completion of claim construction discovery), there is no reason for
`
`Defendants to need additional prior art references than are provided for in the Court’s Model Order.
`
`Defendants’ Positions
`
`(1) There should be an hours-based limit on party depositions.
`
`The parties agree on a 100-hour limit on depositions (which is more than the default limit
`
`in the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure). The parties dispute whether there should be a limit on
`
`how much of those 100 hours can be used take party depositions. Defendants propose a 15-hour
`
`limit on 30(b)(6) depositions of each side and a 40-hours limit on individual depositions of party
`
`employees. Although Plaintiff initially proposed imposing an hours-based limit on party
`
`depositions, Plaintiff then inexplicably shifted positions and now refuses to agree to any hours-
`
`- 2 -
`
`

`

`Case 2:18-cv-00514-JRG Document 32 Filed 04/01/19 Page 3 of 5 PageID #: 261
`
`
`
`based limit on party depositions.1 With no limit, Plaintiff could potentially take up to 100 hours
`
`of 30(b)(6) depositions of the AT&T defendants or up to 100 hours of depositions of AT&T
`
`employees. This would impose an undue burden on the AT&T defendants.
`
`Defendants’ proposed limits are reasonable. Defendants recognize that this patent case
`
`involve three patents covering disparate technologies. Thus, rather than limit each side to 7 hours
`
`of 30(b)(6) depositions of the other side, Defendants have proposed a higher, 15-hour limit.
`
`Likewise, Defendants propose of a limit of 40 hours of individual depositions of party employees.
`
`Together, Defendants’ proposal will provide Plaintiff more than 55 hours of depositions of the
`
`AT&T defendants, giving Plaintiff more than ample opportunity to take discovery of Defendants.
`
`(2)
`
`Defendants request a modest expansion in the number of prior art reference
`allowed under Court’s Model Order Focusing Patent Claims and Prior Art to
`Reduce Cost (General Order No. 12-20).
`
`The Court’s Model Order Focusing Patent Claims and Prior Art to Reduce Cost (General
`
`Order No. 12-20) imposes limits on the number of prior art reference on which Defendants may
`
`rely at different stages of the case. Paragraph 2 sets a limit at the claim construction stage of the
`
`case, and that limit is twelve prior art references per patent. Paragraph 3 sets a limit at the expert
`
`report stage of the case, and that limit is six prior art references per patent. Defendants requests
`
`that the limit in Paragraph 2 be expanded from twelve to sixteen references per patent and that the
`
`limit in Paragraph 3 be expanded from six to ten references per patent.2
`
`
`1 Plaintiff’s draft proposal provided for an hours limit and included blank spaces for the
`specific numbers, but Plaintiff did not fill in the blanks before sending its draft to Defendants.
`When Defendants responded with a specific proposal for an hours limit, rather than negotiate as
`to the specific number of hours that would be appropriate for this case, Plaintiff simply backed
`away from the concept of an hours limit entirely.
`
`2 To accommodate these per-patent limits, Defendants also request an expansion of the
`limit on the total number of prior art references. Given the disparate technology in the three
`
`- 3 -
`
`

`

`Case 2:18-cv-00514-JRG Document 32 Filed 04/01/19 Page 4 of 5 PageID #: 262
`
`
`
`The Court’s Model Rule contemplates that the proposed limits may be expanded in
`
`situations such as this case. Footnote 1 of the Model Rule states, “In cases involving several patent
`
`families, diverse technologies, disparate claims within a patent, or other unique circumstances,
`
`absent agreement of the parties, the court will consider flexibly whether circumstances warrant
`
`expanding the limits on asserted claims or prior art references.” In this case, the three asserted
`
`patents are not related. The patents are from three different patent families. Moreover, the patents
`
`cover disparate technology. See Dkt. No. 1, Exs. A, B, and C. As Plaintiff states in its Complaint,
`
`the ‘272 Patent is directed to “user interfaces for remote control of portable terminals,” Dkt. 1 at
`
`¶ 15; the ‘005 Patent is directed to “digital video compression” and “motion estimation,” Dkt. 1 at
`
`¶ 35; and the ‘676 Patent is directed to a method of allowing two radio interface standards to use
`
`the same frequency band, Dkt. 1 at ¶ 56. Adding to the complexity of this case, Plaintiff is
`
`asserting multiple independent claims for two of the three asserted patents. Given the different
`
`patent families, disparate technologies, and Plaintiff’s assertion of multiple independent claims for
`
`two of the patents, Defendants request a modest expansion in the number of prior art reference
`
`allowed under Court’s Model Order Focusing Patent Claims and Prior Art to Reduce Cost (General
`
`Order No. 12-20).
`
`
`
`
`asserted patents, Defendants does not anticipate any overlapping prior art between the three
`patents.
`
`- 4 -
`
`

`

`Case 2:18-cv-00514-JRG Document 32 Filed 04/01/19 Page 5 of 5 PageID #: 263
`
`
`
`April 1, 2019
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Respectfully submitted,
`
`/s/ M. Elizabeth Day
`M. Elizabeth Day (CA SBN 177125)
`Admitted to Practice in Texas
`eday@feinday.com
`David Alberti
`dalberti@feinday.com
`Sal Lim
`slim@feinday.com
`Marc Belloli
`mbelloli@feinday.com
`FEINBERG DAY ALBERTI LIM &
`BELLOLI LLP
`1600 El Camino Real, Suite 280
`Menlo Park, CA 94025
`Tel: 650 618-4360
`Fax: 650 618-4368
`
`Attorneys for Plaintiff
`Uniloc 2017 LLC
`
`
`
`
`/s/ Jeffrey D. Baxter
`Timothy Durst
`Tim.durst@bakerbotts.com
`Brian D. Johnston
`Brian.johnston@bakerbotts.com
`Jeffrey D. Baxter
`Jeff.baxter@bakerbotts.com
`BAKER BOTTS LLP
`2001 Ross Avenue, Suite 1100
`Dallas, TX. 75201
`
`Michelle J. Eber
`michelle.eber@bakerbotts.com
`BAKER BOTTS LLP
`One Shell Plaza
`910 Louisiana Street
`Houston, TX 77002-4995
`Telephone: (713) 229-1234
`Facsimile: (713) 229-1522
`
`Jon Swenson
`Jon.swenson@bakerbotts.com
`Bryant C. Boren, Jr.
`Bryant.c.boren@bakerbotts.com
`BAKER BOTTS LLP
`1001 Page Mill Rd.,
`Building One, Suite 200
`Palo Alto, CA 94304
`Telephone: (650) 739-7500
`Facsimile: (650) 739-7699
`Deron R. Dacus
`ddacus@dacusfirm.com
`The Dacus Firm, P.C.
`821 ESE Loop 323, Suite 430,Tyler
`Texas 75701
`903/705-1117
`
`Attorneys for Defendant
`AT&T Services, Inc. and AT&T Mobility
`
`- 5 -
`
`

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