`
`UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
`EASTERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS
`MARSHALL DIVISION
`
`FORAS TECHNOLOGIES LTD.,
`
`Plaintiff,
`
`v.
`
`Civil Action No. 2:23-cv-00314-JRG
`
`VOLKSWAGEN AG, APTIV PLC, and
`VALEO SA,
`
`JURY TRIAL DEMANDED
`
`Defendants.
`
`FIRST AMENDED DOCKET CONTROL ORDER
`
`It is hereby ORDERED that the Unopposed Motion is GRANTED (Dkt No. 63) and
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`the following schedule of deadlines is in effect until further order of this Court:
`
`Original
`Deadline
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`August 4, 2025
`
`7 days before
`Jury Selection
`
`10 days before
`Jury Selection
`
`New Deadline
`
`Event
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`*Jury Selection - 9:00 a.m. in Marshall, Texas1
`
`*Defendant to disclose final invalidity
`theories, final prior art
`references/combinations, and final equitable
`defenses.2
`
`*Plaintiff to disclose final election of Asserted
`Claims.3
`
`1 Lead counsel for Defendant Valeo SE is scheduled to be at trial in another court beginning on July 28,
`2025. That trial, which was set before the entry of this Docket Control Order, may proceed into the week
`of August 4, 2025. Counsel for Valeo SE is not requesting relief at this time, but is currently noticing
`counsel for the other parties and the Court of the present conflict with the Jury Selection date.
`
`2 The proposed DCO shall include this specific deadline. The deadline shall read, "7 days before Jury
`Selection," and shall not include a specific date.
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`3 Given the Court's past experiences with litigants dropping claims and defenses during or on the eve
`of trial, the Court is of the opinion that these additional deadlines are necessary. The proposed DCO
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`
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`Case 2:23-cv-00314-JRG Document 67 Filed 04/17/24 Page 2 of 7 PageID #: 1599
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`
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` *
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` If a juror questionnaire is to be used, an editable
`(in Microsoft Word format) questionnaire shall
`be jointly submitted to the Deputy Clerk in
`Charge by this date.4
`
`
`*Pretrial Conference - 9:00 a.m. in Marshall,
`Texas before Judge Rodney Gilstrap
`
`
`*Notify Court of Agreements Reached During
`Meet and Confer
`
`The parties are ordered to meet and confer on any
`outstanding objections or motions in limine. The
`parties shall advise the Court of any agreements
`reached no later than 1:00 p.m. three (3) business
`days before the pretrial conference.
`
`
`*File Joint Pretrial Order, Joint Proposed Jury
`Instructions, Joint Proposed Verdict Form,
`Responses to Motions in Limine, Updated Exhibit
`Lists, Updated Witness Lists, and Updated
`Deposition Designations
`
`
`*File Notice of Request for Daily Transcript or Real
`Time Reporting.
`
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`If a daily transcript or real time reporting of court
`proceedings is requested for trial, the party or
`parties making said request shall file a notice with
`the Court and e-mail the Court Reporter, Shawn
`McRoberts, at
`shawn_mcroberts@txed.uscourts.gov.
`
`
`File Motions in Limine
`
`The parties shall limit their motions in limine to
`issues that if improperly introduced at trial would
`be so prejudicial that the Court could not alleviate
`the prejudice by giving appropriate instructions to
`the jury.
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`July 7, 2025
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`June 30, 2025
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`June 23, 2025
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`June 23, 2025
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`June 16, 2025
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`June 9, 2025
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`shall include this specific deadline. The deadline shall read, "10 days before Jury Selection," and shall
`not include a specific date.
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`4 The Parties are referred to the Court's Standing Order Regarding Use of Juror Questionnaires
`in Advance of Voir Dire.
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`Case 2:23-cv-00314-JRG Document 67 Filed 04/17/24 Page 3 of 7 PageID #: 1600
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`June 9, 2025
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`June 2, 2025
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`May 19, 2025
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`May 12, 2025
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`April 28, 2025
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`April 28, 2025
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`Serve Objections to Rebuttal Pretrial Disclosures
`
`
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`Serve Objections to Pretrial Disclosures; and Serve
`Rebuttal Pretrial Disclosures
`
`
`Serve Pretrial Disclosures (Witness List,
`Deposition Designations, and Exhibit List) by the
`Party with the Burden of Proof
`
`
`*Response to Dispositive Motions (including
`Daubert Motions).
`
`Responses to dispositive motions that were filed
`prior to the dispositive motion deadline, including
`Daubert Motions, shall be due in accordance with
`Local Rule CV-7(e), not to exceed the deadline as
`set forth in this Docket Control Order.5 Motions
`for Summary Judgment shall comply with Local
`Rule CV-56.
`
`*File Motions to Strike Expert Testimony
`(including Daubert Motions)
`
`No motion to strike expert testimony (including
`a Daubert motion) may be filed after this date
`without leave of the Court.
`
`
`
`
`*File Dispositive Motions
`
`No dispositive motion may be filed after this date
`without leave of the Court. 6
`
`Motions shall comply with Local Rule CV-56 and
`Local Rule CV-7. Motions to extend page limits
`will
`only
`be
`granted
`in
`exceptional
`circumstances.
`Exceptional
`circumstances
`require more than agreement among the parties.
`
`
`
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`
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`5 The parties are directed to Local Rule CV-7(d), which provides in part that "[a] party's failure
`to oppose a motion in the manner prescribed herein creates a presumption that the party does
`not controvert the facts set out by movant and has no evidence to offer in opposition to the
`motion."
`
` 6
`
` If the deadline under Local Rule CV 7(e) exceeds the deadline for Response to Dispositive
`Motions, the deadline for Response to Dispositive Motion controls.
`
`
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`
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`Case 2:23-cv-00314-JRG Document 67 Filed 04/17/24 Page 4 of 7 PageID #: 1601
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`April 21, 2025
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`April 7, 2025
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`March 17,
`2025
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`March 7, 2025
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`February 24,
`2025
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`2 weeks After
`Court’s
`Issuance of
`Claim
`Construction
`Order
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`February 3,
`2025
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`January 21,
`2025
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`January 13,
`2025
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`January 6,
`2025
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`December 23,
`2024
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`December 23,
`2024
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`Deadline to Complete Expert Discovery
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`Serve Disclosures for Rebuttal Expert Witnesses
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`
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`Serve Disclosures for Expert Witnesses by the
`Party with the Burden of Proof
`
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`Deadline to Complete Fact Discovery and File
`Motions to Compel Discovery
`
`
`Comply with P.R. 3-7 (Opinion of Counsel
`Defenses)
`
`
`Submit Joint Notice Indicating Whether the Case
`Should Be Referred For Mediation
`
`(Joint Claim
`
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`*Claim Construction Hearing - 9:00 a.m. in
`Marshall, Texas before Judge Rodney Gilstrap
`
`
`*Comply with P.R. 4-5(d)
`Construction Chart)
`
`
`*Comply with P.R. 4-5(c)
`Construction Brief)
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`Comply with P.R. 4-5(b) (Responsive Claim
`Construction Brief)
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`Comply with P.R. 4-5(a) (Opening Claim
`Construction Brief) and Submit Technical
`Tutorials (if any)
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`(Reply Claim
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`
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`Good cause must be shown to submit technical
`tutorials after the deadline to comply with P.R.
`4-5(a).
`
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`Deadline to Substantially Complete Document
`Production and Exchange Privilege Logs
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`Counsel are expected to make good faith efforts to
`produce all required documents as soon as they are
`available and not wait until
`the substantial
`completion deadline.
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`Case 2:23-cv-00314-JRG Document 67 Filed 04/17/24 Page 5 of 7 PageID #: 1602
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`December 9,
`2024
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`December 2,
`2024
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`November 18,
`2024
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`November 12,
`2024
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`October 21,
`2024
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`September 30,
`2024
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`July 22, 2024
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`July 22, 2024
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`May 20, 2024
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`April 18, 2024
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`April 15, 2024
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`Comply with P.R. 4-4 (Deadline to Complete
`Claim Construction Discovery)
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`File Response to Amended Pleadings
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`
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`*File Amended Pleadings
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`It is not necessary to seek leave of Court to amend
`pleadings prior
`to
`this deadline unless
`the
`amendment seeks to assert additional patents.
`
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`Comply with P.R. 4-3 (Joint Claim Construction
`Statement)
`
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`Comply with P.R. 4-2 (Exchange Preliminary
`Claim Constructions)
`
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`Comply with P.R. 4-1 (Exchange Proposed Claim
`Terms)
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`Comply with Standing Order Regarding Subject-
`Matter Eligibility Contentions7
`
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`Comply with P.R. 3-3 & 3-4(b) (Invalidity
`Contentions)
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`Comply with P.R. 3-4(a)
`Deadline for Aptiv to Comply with Paragraph 1 of
`the Discovery Order (Initial Disclosures)
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`*File Proposed Protective Order and Comply with
`Paragraphs 1 & 3 of the Discovery Order (Initial
`and Additional Disclosures)
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`The Proposed Protective Order shall be filed as a
`separate motion with the caption indicating whether
`or not the proposed order is opposed in any part.
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`
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`7http://www.txed.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/judgeFiles/EDTX%20Standing%200rder%2
`0 Re%20Subject%20Matter%20Eligibility%20Contentions%20.pdf [https://perma.cc/RQN2-
`YU5P]
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`Case 2:23-cv-00314-JRG Document 67 Filed 04/17/24 Page 6 of 7 PageID #: 1603
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`April 8, 2024
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`April 1, 2024
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`March 11, 2024
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`*File Proposed Docket Control Order and Proposed
`Discovery Order
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`The Proposed Docket Control Order and Proposed
`Discovery Order shall be filed as separate motions
`with the caption indicating whether or not the
`proposed order is opposed in any part.
`
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`Join Additional Parties
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`Comply with P.R. 3-1 & 3-2 (Infringement
`Contentions)
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`
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`(*) indicates a deadline that cannot be changed without an acceptable showing of good
`cause. Good cause is not shown merely by indicating that the parties agree that the
`deadline should be changed.
`
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`ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS
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`Mediation: While certain cases may benefit from mediation, such may not be appropriate for
`every case. The Court finds that the Parties are best suited to evaluate whether mediation will benefit
`the case after the issuance of the Court's claim construction order. Accordingly, the Court ORDERS
`the Parties to file a Joint Notice indicating whether the case should be referred for mediation within
`fourteen days of the issuance of the Court's claim construction order. As a part of such Joint Notice,
`the Parties should indicate whether they have a mutually agreeable mediator for the Court to consider.
`If the Parties disagree about whether mediation is appropriate, the Parties should set forth a brief
`statement of their competing positions in the Joint Notice.
`
`
`Summary Judgment Motions, Motions to Strike Expert Testimony, and Daubert
`Motions: For each motion, the moving party shall provide the Court with two (2) hard copies of the
`completed briefing (opening motion, response, reply, and if applicable, sur-reply), excluding exhibits,
`in D-three-ring binders, appropriately tabbed. All documents shall be single-sided and must include
`the CM/ECF header. These copies shall be delivered to the Court within three (3) business days after
`briefing has completed. For expert-related motions, complete digital copies of the relevant expert
`report(s) and accompanying exhibits shall be submitted on a single flash drive to the Court. Complete
`digital copies of the expert report(s) shall be delivered to the Court no later than the dispositive motion
`deadline.
`
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`Indefiniteness: In lieu of early motions for summary judgment, the parties are directed to
`include any arguments related to the issue of indefiniteness in their Markman briefing, subject to the
`local rules' normal page limits.
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`Lead Counsel: The Parties are directed to Local Rule CV-1 l(a)(l), which provides that "[o]n
`the first appearance through counsel, each party shall designate a lead attorney on the pleadings or
`otherwise." Additionally, once designated, a party's lead attorney may only be changed by the filing of
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`Case 2:23-cv-00314-JRG Document 67 Filed 04/17/24 Page 7 of 7 PageID #: 1604
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`a Motion to Change Lead Counsel and thereafter obtaining from the Court an Order granting leave to
`designate different lead counsel. The true lead counsel should be designated early and should not
`expect to parachute in as lead once the case has been largely developed.
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`Motions for Continuance: The following will not warrant a continuance nor justify a failure
`to comply with the discovery deadline:
`
`(a)
`
`(b)
`
`The fact that there are motions for summary judgment or motions to dismiss pending;
`
`The fact that one or more of the attorneys is set for trial in another court on the same day, unless
`the other setting was made prior to the date of this order or was made as a special provision for
`the parties in the other case;
`
`
`(c)
`
`The failure to complete discovery prior to trial, unless the parties can demonstrate that it was
`impossible to complete discovery despite their good faith effort to do so.
`
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`Amendments to the Docket Control Order ("DCO"): Any motion to alter any date on the DCO
`shall take the form of a motion to amend the DCO. The motion to amend the DCO shall include a
`proposed order that lists all of the remaining dates in one column (as above) and the proposed changes
`to each date in an additional adjacent column (if there is no change for a date the proposed date column
`should remain blank or indicate that it is unchanged). In other words, the DCO in the proposed order
`should be complete such that one can clearly see all the remaining deadlines and the changes, if any,
`to those deadlines, rather than needing to also refer to an earlier version of the DCO.
`
`Proposed DCO: The Parties' Proposed DCO should also follow the format described above under
`"Amendments to the Docket Control Order ('DCO')."
`
`Joint Pretrial Order: In the contentions of the Parties included in the Joint Pretrial Order, the Plaintiff
`shall specify all allegedly infringed claims that will be asserted at trial. The Plaintiff shall also specify
`the nature of each theory of infringement, including under which subsections of 35 U.S.C. § 271 it
`alleges infringement, and whether the Plaintiff alleges divided infringement or infringement under the
`doctrine of equivalents. Each Defendant shall indicate the nature of each theory of invalidity, including
`invalidity for anticipation, obviousness, subject-matter eligibility, written description, enablement, or
`any other basis for invalidity. The Defendant shall also specify each prior art reference or combination
`of references upon which the Defendant shall rely at trial, with respect to each theory of invalidity. The
`contentions of the Parties may not be amended, supplemented, or dropped without leave of the Court
`based upon a showing of good cause.
`
`Trial: All parties must appear in person at trial. All non-individual (including but not limited to
`corporate) parties must appear at trial through the presence in person of a designated representative.
`Once they have appeared, any representative of a non-individual party shall not be replaced or
`substituted without express leave of Court.
`
`
`
`
`
`
`.
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`____________________________________
`RODNEY GILSTRAP
`UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
`
`So ORDERED and SIGNED this 17th day of April, 2024.
`
`