Legal Definitions - Walker Process claim

A Walker Process claim is a specific type of legal action brought by a defendant in a patent infringement lawsuit. It alleges that the patent owner obtained their patent through fraud committed against the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The defendant bringing this claim argues that because the patent was obtained fraudulently, it is invalid, and the patent owner then used this invalid patent to illegally monopolize a market, violating antitrust laws.

Essentially, a Walker Process claim asserts that the patent owner not only possesses a patent that should never have been granted due to their deceptive actions but also used that improperly obtained patent to unfairly dominate a market, stifling competition. This type of claim is named after the U.S. Supreme Court case Walker Process Equipment, Inc. v. Food Machinery & Chemical Corp., which established this legal principle.

Here are some examples of how a Walker Process claim might arise:

• Pharmaceutical Industry: Imagine "MediCorp" sues "GenericPharma" for infringing its patent on a new medication. GenericPharma's legal team uncovers evidence that MediCorp intentionally withheld crucial clinical trial data from the USPTO during the patent application process. This data would have revealed that the drug was not as novel or effective as MediCorp claimed. GenericPharma then files a Walker Process claim, arguing that MediCorp defrauded the USPTO to get the patent and subsequently used this fraudulently obtained patent to monopolize the market for this type of medication, preventing competitors from offering more affordable generic versions.

  This illustrates a Walker Process claim because GenericPharma, as the defendant, alleges that MediCorp committed fraud against the USPTO to secure its patent and then used that invalid patent to create an illegal monopoly in the drug market.

• Software Technology: A large tech company, "InnovateCorp," holds a patent for a unique data compression algorithm and sues a startup, "ByteSolutions," for infringement. ByteSolutions' investigation reveals that InnovateCorp's engineers deliberately submitted misleading performance benchmarks to the USPTO, exaggerating the algorithm's efficiency and novelty, while knowing about existing similar technologies that were not disclosed. ByteSolutions then asserts a Walker Process claim, contending that InnovateCorp used this fraudulently obtained patent to maintain its dominant position in the data compression software market, stifling innovation and competition from smaller companies.

  This scenario demonstrates a Walker Process claim as ByteSolutions, the defendant, accuses InnovateCorp of defrauding the USPTO to obtain a patent and then leveraging that invalid patent to monopolize the software market.

• Manufacturing Equipment: "Precision Robotics Inc." holds a patent for a specialized industrial robot arm and sues "Automated Solutions LLC" for patent infringement. Automated Solutions discovers that Precision Robotics failed to disclose a crucial piece of "prior art" (an existing, similar robot design that predated their invention) during the patent application process, despite being aware of it. This omission made Precision Robotics' invention appear more unique and patentable than it actually was. Automated Solutions then files a Walker Process claim, arguing that Precision Robotics used this fraudulently obtained patent to create a monopoly in the market for this specific type of industrial robot, harming other manufacturers and consumers by limiting choices and driving up prices.

  Here, Automated Solutions, as the defendant, is alleging that Precision Robotics defrauded the USPTO by withholding information, leading to an invalid patent, which Precision Robotics then used to monopolize the industrial robot market.