Stoneeagle Servs., Inc. v. Gillman, No. 13-1248 (Fed. Cir. 2014)
Annotate this CaseIn 2006, Allen and Gillman agreed to adapt Allen’s electronic payment system, then used in the automotive industry, to process health care claims. Their contracts provided that Allen’s company, StoneEagle, owned the new system technology. StoneEagle licensed the technology to Talon, which was responsible for marketing. Allen applied for a patent on the system, listing himself as the sole inventor. Gillman had some role in drafting the application and in the application process. Although not listed as an inventor, Gillman had an ownership interest in the patent application until at least July 2010, when he assigned his interest to StoneEagle. The patent issued in September 2010. By 2011, the relationship had soured. StoneEagle sought a declaratory judgment that Allen was the sole inventor and owner of the patent and asserted state law trade secret misappropriation claims. The court issued a preliminary injunction prohibiting use or disclosure of StoneEagle’s trade secrets and confidential information. StoneEagle terminated the license agreement, but Talon and Gillman allegedly started a competing venture. The district court denied a contempt order and clairifed the injunction. The Federal Circuit remanded with instructions to dismiss, finding that the court lacked jurisdiction over the case when StoneEagle initiated the lawsuit because it did not did not allege an actual controversy concerning inventorship.
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