While Microsoft was not able to convince an appeals court that Microsoft’s Outlook software and two other products infringed on an Alcatel-Lucent patent, the software giant was able to have its $358 million damages verdict recalculated. The move came after the court ruled that such a verdict was not actually supported by evidence.
 
The case, which mostly focused on Alcatel-Lucent’s claim that Outlook’s calendar function infringed on one of its patents, has seen Microsoft argue that it should only have to pay $6.5 million in damages. According to the appeals court, as well as part of Microsoft’s argument, the calendar function …read more

The word that most non-US businesspeople fear when discussing the US is “lawsuit.” It’s certainly true that the US system is different than most, for three primary reasons:
1. The loser doesn’t pay. That’s right, if someone sues you and costs you money, you still have to pay your own legal fees. That’s expensive enough if you’re in Poughkeepsie, but if you’re in Nagasaki or Naples it can be a pretty big deal. Not only doesn’t the loser always pay the winner’s fees, they may not even pay their own fees if the case is taken on contingency. That means …read more