Century Wrecker Corp. v. ER Buske Mfg. Co., Inc.
| Citation | 913 F. Supp. 1256 |
| Decision Date | 09 January 1996 |
| Docket Number | No. C 95-4050.,C 95-4050. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Northern District of West Virginia |
| Parties | CENTURY WRECKER CORPORATION, Plaintiff, v. E.R. BUSKE MANUFACTURING COMPANY, INC., E.R. Buske Distributing Company, and E.R. Buske, Defendants. |
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Edmund J. Sease, Daniel J. Cosgrove, and Jeffrey D. Harty of Zarley, McKee, Thomte, Voorhees & Sease, Des Moines, Iowa, and by Vice President and General Counsel for Century Wrecker Corp., Frank Madonia, for Plaintiff Century Wrecker Corp.
David A. Tank and Kent A. Herink of Davis, Brown, Kohen, Shors & Roberts, P.C., Des Moines, Iowa, for Defendants E.R. Buske Manufacturing Co., E.R. Buske Distributing Co., and E.R. Buske.
This post-trial opinion follows a jury verdict for the Plaintiff in this patent infringement litigation between competing industry titans in the tow truck and wrecker recovery equipment manufacturing business. Similar to the wrecker recovery industry itself, where often the work begins only after the dust settles, the jury's verdict here, reached after eight days of trial, has generated a plethora of post-trial motions filed by each of the parties. These motions raise several nettlesome issues for the court to resolve. The court is mindful that the patent system is based on the United States Constitution and, therefore, is concerned that resolution of these post-trial issues in this case serve "to promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts." U.S. CONST., art. I, § 8, cl. 8.1
These concerns are raised here by post-trial motions of both parties. Plaintiff has moved for the entry of judgment, including an award of prejudgment and postjudgment interest, a discretionary award from the court of treble enhanced damages, attorney fees, and costs, and an injunction precluding further infringement. Defendants have resisted these motions and have, for their part, renewed their motion for judgment as a matter of law, or, in the alternative, motion for new trial or alteration of judgment. Defendants' motions seek to overturn the jury's findings of willfulness of infringement and Defendant Earl Buske's personal liability arising from his inducement of infringement. Defendants' post-trial motions also vigorously attack the jury's award of more than one million dollars in damages. In light of the jury's categorical rejection of the entire market value rule, Defendants argue the Plaintiff failed to establish damages based on an alternate reasonable royalty theory.
In its original complaint, plaintiff Century Wrecker Corporation ("Century Wrecker") alleged defendants E.R. Buske Manufacturing Company, E.R. Buske Distributing Company, and E.R. Buske individually ("Buske") had violated federal patent laws by infringing two patents owned by Century Wrecker.2 Many of the claims and issues in this lawsuit were disposed of in a partial grant of summary judgment in favor of Century Wrecker by the court on March 15, 1995, and in a jury trial that began on October 4, 1995. However, several issues remain to be resolved in this ruling on various post-trial motions.
On March 15, 1995, the court granted in part and denied in part Century Wrecker's September 2, 1994, motion for summary judgment. The court held that Buske had infringed both the '737 "L-arm patent" and the '978 "underlift" patent and that the '978 patent was sufficiently "enabling" to meet the requirements of 35 U.S.C. § 112. However, the court held that there were genuine issues of material fact precluding summary judgment in Century Wrecker's favor on the "obviousness" of both the '737 patent and the '978 patent under 35 U.S.C. § 103 and the issue of whether the '737 patent had been "anticipated" under 35 U.S.C. § 102(a).
This matter therefore proceeded to jury trial beginning on October 4, 1995. At the conclusion of Century Wrecker's evidence, Buske moved for judgment as a matter of law pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 50(b), and renewed this motion at the conclusion of its own evidence. The court denied Buske's motion for judgment as a matter of law on each and every ground. On October 18, 1995, the jury returned a verdict in favor of Century Wrecker. Specifically, the jury found that Earl Buske was guilty of inducing infringement of the patents-in-suit, that each defendant had committed willful infringement, that the patents-in-suit were not invalid, and that actual damages in the case should be awarded in the amount of $1,088,457.
Following the trial, on October 26, 1995, Century Wrecker filed a motion for the entry of judgment, including pre-judgment interest, and a motion for an injunction which would prohibit Buske or those in active concert with Buske from infringement of claims 1-3, 8, and 10-14 of the '737 patent and claims 1-3 and 8 of the '978 patent. Century Wrecker further cited specific models which would be covered by the injunction, including the Bodyguard, MD-730, MD-1030, MD-1280, and LD-5000. Also, on October 26, 1995, Century Wrecker filed a motion for enhanced damages pursuant to 35 U.S.C. § 284, based on the jury's finding of "willfulness" of the infringement, and for attorney fees and costs pursuant to 35 U.S.C. § 285, asserting that this is an "exceptional case."
On November 3, 1995, Buske resisted Century Wrecker's motion for entry of judgment, the application of pre-judgment interest, and the entry of injunction. That same date, Buske also resisted Century Wrecker's motion for increased damages, costs, and attorney fees. In addition to its resistances to Century Wrecker's post-trial motions, on October 27, 1995, Buske renewed its own post-trial motion for judgment as a matter of law or, in the alternative, moved for a new trial or for amendment of judgment. Century Wrecker resisted Buske's post-trial motion on November 7, 1995. On November 14, 1995, Century Wrecker filed reply briefs in further support of its post-trial motions. On December 7, 1995, Buske filed a motion seeking leave to supplement its brief in support of its renewed motion for judgment as a matter of law. On December 14, 1995, the court granted Buske's motion to file the supplemental brief.
The court heard oral arguments on the parties' post-trial motions on December 14, 1995. At the oral arguments, Century Wrecker was represented by Edmund J. Sease, Daniel...
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