How the Western District of Texas Became a Patent Hot Spot
The Western District of Texas Patent Blog's Joseph Abraham and Mark Siegmund explain how Judge Alan Albright became the nation's busiest patent judge, and compare local rules and juries in the Eastern and Western Districts.
March 18, 2021 at 05:10 PM
10 minute read
The original version of this story was published on Texas Lawyer
Joseph Abraham, left, of the Law Office of Joseph M. Abraham in Austin and Mark Siegmund, right, of the Law Firm of Walt Fair in Waco (courtesy photos)
Four years ago, U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap of the Eastern District of Texas was the nation's busiest patent judge, accounting for 35% to 40% of the U.S. patent infringement docket. A 2017 Supreme Court decision followed by the appointment of a new judge has caused much of that docket to migrate a couple hundred miles southwest. U.S. District Judge Alan Albright of the Western District of Texas now sees the most patent cases in the country, about 20% of new filings in 2020. Gilstrap was still the second-busiest, with about 10%.
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