throbber

`
`Paper No.
`Filed: April 10, 2014
`
`
`Filed on behalf of: VirnetX Inc.
`By:
`Joseph E. Palys
`
`Naveen Modi
`Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow,
` Garrett & Dunner, L.L.P.
`11955 Freedom Drive
`Reston, VA 20190-5675
`Telephone: 571-203-2700
`Facsimile: 202-408-4400
`E-mail: joseph.palys@finnegan.com
`
` naveen.modi@finnegan.com
`
`
`
`
`UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`APPLE INC.
`Petitioner
`
`v.
`
`VIRNETX INC.
`Patent Owner
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Case IPR2014-00486
`Patent 8,051,181
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`PATENT OWNER’S OPPOSITION TO APPLE’S MOTION FOR JOINDER
`
`

`

`Case No. IPR2014-00486
`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
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`
`TABLE OF CONTENTS
`
`
`INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................... 1
`
`PRECISE RELIEF REQUESTED .................................................................. 2
`
`I.
`
`II.
`
`III. STATEMENT OF FACTS .............................................................................. 2
`
`IV. ARGUMENT ................................................................................................... 4
`
`A.
`
`B.
`
`Joinder Involving Different Patents Is Statutorily Barred .................... 4
`
`Joinder Will Significantly Increase the Complexity and
`Duration of the Microsoft IPR Proceedings and Prejudice
`VirnetX .................................................................................................. 6
`
`C. Apple Will Not Be Prejudiced if the Board Denies Joinder ...............11
`
`D.
`
`Joinder of Apple’s Time-Barred Petitions Is Statutorily Barred ........12
`
`E. Apple’s ’181 Proceedings Should Not Be Joined to Its Own
`’274 Proceedings .................................................................................15
`
`V. CONCLUSION ..............................................................................................15
`
`
`APPENDIX – RESPONSE TO APPLE’S STATEMENT OF MATERIAL FACTS
`
`
`
`
`
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`
`i
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`Case No. IPR2014-00486
`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
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`
`TABLE OF AUTHORITIES
`
` Page(s)
`
`Federal Cases
`Dell, Inc. v. Network-1 Sec. Solutions, Inc.,
`IPR2013-00071, Paper No. 17 (July 29, 2013) ............................................ 12, 14
`
`Motionless Keyboard Co. v. Microsoft Corp.,
`486 F.3d 1376 (Fed. Cir. 2007) ............................................................................ 7
`
`Motorola Mobility LLC v. Softview LLC,
`IPR2013-00256, Paper No. 10 (June 20, 2013) .................................................... 6
`
`NetApp, Inc. v. PersonalWeb Technologies, LLC
`IPR2013-00319, Paper No. 18 (July 22, 2013) ........................................ 8, 10-11
`
`Sony Corp. of Am. v. Network-1 Sec. Solutions, Inc.,
`IPR2013-00386, Paper No. 16 (July 29, 2013) .................................................... 9
`
`Federal Statutes
`
`35 U.S.C. § 112 .......................................................................................................... 8
`
`35 U.S.C. § 311 .............................................................................................. 5, 12-14
`
`35 U.S.C. § 312 .......................................................................................................... 4
`
`35 U.S.C. § 315 .......................................................................................... 4, 5, 12-15
`
`35 U.S.C. § 316 .......................................................................................................... 5
`
`35 U.S.C. § 325 .......................................................................................................... 4
`
`Regulations
`
`37 C.F.R. § 42.122 ..................................................................................................... 2
`
`Other Authorities
`
`http://www.uspto.gov/ip/boards/bpai/prps.jsp
`(last visited Apr. 8, 2014) ..................................................................................... 4
`
`
`
`ii
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`

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`Case No. IPR2014-00486
`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
`
`
`INTRODUCTION
`Apple asks the Board to take the unprecedented step of joining inter partes
`
`I.
`
`review proceedings on different patents—a premature request that is statutorily
`
`barred, would add new substantive issues and unnecessary complexity to the
`
`proceedings, is prejudicial to VirnetX, and overlooks that Apple is already
`
`pursuing invalidity challenges in the Office through inter partes reexamination and
`
`in a district court litigation. Though Apple contends that joinder will allow for
`
`“efficient[]” and “timely” resolution (Paper No. 3 at 1), the facts show otherwise.
`
`Apple proposes combining four of its IPR petitions with two of Microsoft’s,
`
`adding to Microsoft’s proceedings one new patent, twenty-nine new claims, six
`
`additional prior art references, nineteen new grounds of unpatentability, three new
`
`declarations totaling over 660 pages, and one new declarant. Accordingly, Patent
`
`Owner respectfully requests that the Board deny Apple’s request to join its
`
`IPR2014-00485 and -00486 of U.S. Patent No. 8,051,181 (“the ’181 patent”) and
`
`its IPR2014-00483 and -004841 of U.S. Patent No. 7,987,274 (“the ’274 patent”)
`
`with Microsoft’s IPR2014-00403 and -00404 of the ’274 patent.
`
`
`1 Apple’s joinder requests are procedurally defective because Apple only filed
`
`them in the ’181 proceedings and failed to file joinder requests in its ’274
`
`proceedings. They are also defective to the extent they seek to join Microsoft’s
`
`
`
`1
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`

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`Case No. IPR2014-00486
`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
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`
`PRECISE RELIEF REQUESTED
`
`II.
`
`VirnetX requests that the Board deny Apple’s motion for joinder.
`
`III. STATEMENT OF FACTS
`On November 1, 2011, VirnetX served Apple with a complaint alleging that
`
`certain Apple products infringe ’181 patent claims 1, 2, 4-12, 17, 19, 21, 22, and
`
`24-29. Ex. 2001. The litigation was stayed pending resolution of an International
`
`Trade Commission case between VirnetX and Apple. The stay has since been
`
`lifted and the litigation was consolidated with another case before the same court
`
`involving the same parties and related patents—VirnetX Inc. v. Apple, Inc., No.
`
`6:12-cv-855 (E.D. Tex. Nov. 6, 2012). The consolidated cases remain pending.
`
`On March 28, 2012, Apple initiated inter partes reexamination 95/001,949
`
`of all claims 1-29 of the ’181 patent (“the ’181 reexamination”). Most recently in
`
`this reexamination, the Office issued a Right of Appeal Notice and VirnetX filed
`
`its opening Appeal Brief on March 14, 2014.2
`
`
`petitions on the ’274 patent to one another. “Joinder may be requested by a patent
`
`owner or petitioner.” 37 C.F.R. § 42.122. Apple is neither a petitioner nor patent
`
`owner in relation to the Microsoft proceedings, so it cannot request this joinder.
`
`2 Prosecution was improperly closed, so VirnetX filed a petition to reopen
`
`prosecution when it filed its appeal brief. It awaits further action by the Office.
`
`
`
`2
`
`

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`Case No. IPR2014-00486
`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
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`In addition to the ’181 reexamination, Apple filed two requests for inter
`
`partes review of the ’181 patent and two requests for inter partes review of the
`
`’274 patent, while Microsoft filed two requests for inter partes review of the ’274
`
`patent. Apple requests that the Board join all of these inter partes review
`
`proceedings. Paper No. 3.
`
`Apple filed its petitions for inter partes review of the ’181 patent on March
`
`10, 2014, requesting cancellation of claims 1-29. The first of these two ’181 IPR
`
`petitions (IPR2014-00485) proposes seven grounds of unpatentability based on
`
`eight references, five of which are different from Microsoft’s asserted prior art
`
`references. The second (IPR2014-00486) proposes an additional five grounds of
`
`unpatentability based on four references, three of which are different from
`
`Microsoft’s asserted prior art references. Apple also submitted two supporting
`
`declarations totaling 472 pages with each petition. See Exs. 1011, 1029.
`
`Apple filed its petitions for inter partes review of the ’274 patent on March
`
`7, 2014, requesting cancellation of claims 1-5, 7, 8, 10, 12, 13, 15, 17, and 18.
`
`Apple’s first IPR petition of the ’274 patent (IPR2014-00483) proposes six
`
`grounds of unpatentability based on eight references, five of which are different
`
`from Microsoft’s asserted prior art references. The second (IPR2014-00484)
`
`proposes an additional eight grounds of unpatentability based on six references,
`
`three of which are different from Microsoft’s asserted prior art references. Apple
`
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`3
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`Case No. IPR2014-00486
`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
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`also submitted two supporting declarations totaling 215 pages with each petition.
`
`See IPR2014-00483, Exs. 1011, 1029.
`
`Microsoft filed its petitions for inter partes review of the ’274 patent on
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`February 4, 2014. The first (IPR2014-00403) requests cancellation of claims 1-5,
`
`7, 8, 10, 12, 13, 15, 17, and 18 and raises three grounds of unpatentability based on
`
`three references. The second (IPR2014-00404) requests cancellation of claims 1-5,
`
`7, 8, 10, 12, 15, 17, and 18 and raises an additional four grounds of unpatentability
`
`based on three separate references. Each petition is accompanied by a 27-page
`
`supporting declaration. See IPR2014-00403, Ex. 1011.
`
`IV. ARGUMENT
`Joinder Involving Different Patents Is Statutorily Barred
`A.
`The Office has interpreted the joinder statutes to preclude Apple’s request to
`
`join proceedings on different patents, explaining that “[o]nly joinder of like review
`
`proceedings of the same patent is permitted. See 35 U.S.C. §§ 315(c) and
`
`325(c).” http://www.uspto.gov/ip/boards/bpai/prps.jsp (last visited Apr. 8, 2014)
`
`(emphasis added).
`
`Apple takes a different view, contending that the joinder authority for IPRs
`
`is distinct from that for post-grant review proceedings and allows joinder of IPR
`
`proceedings on different patents. See Paper No. 3 at 8-9. But the statutory
`
`language governing IPR proceedings is patent-specific, limiting each proceeding to
`
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`4
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`Case No. IPR2014-00486
`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
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`just one patent. IPR proceedings are begun with “a petition to institute an inter
`
`partes review of the patent.” 35 U.S.C. § 311(a) (emphasis added); see also Ex.
`
`2002, 157 Cong. Rec. S1375-76 (daily ed. Mar. 8, 2011) (repeatedly referring to
`
`“the patent” in an IPR proceeding). Section 315(c)’s joinder discussion references
`
`the creation of a single inter partes review, stating that “[i]f the Director institutes
`
`an inter partes review, the Director, in his or her discretion, may join [a] party to
`
`that inter partes review . . . .” 35 U.S.C. § 315(c) (emphasis added).
`
`Accordingly, while joinder may involve multiple petitions for review of “a
`
`patent,” the Director may only institute and join parties to an “inter partes review
`
`of the patent.” See 35 U.S.C. §§ 311(a) (emphasis added), 315(c). This view is
`
`consistent with the legislative history of the AIA, where Senator Kyl envisioned an
`
`exemplary scenario for joinder as one in which “a party that files an identical
`
`petition” (i.e., on the same patent) may be joined to another proceeding. Ex. 2002,
`
`157 Cong. Rec. S1376 (daily ed. Mar. 8, 2011). Allowing otherwise would
`
`frustrate the Office’s mandate to issue a final determination “not later than 1 year
`
`after the date” on which an IPR is instituted. 35 U.S.C. § 316(c)(11).
`
`Adopting Apple’s interpretation of “the patent” in the AIA to encompass
`
`different patents would also expand the scope of the § 315(b) bar. Section 315(b)
`
`precludes institution of IPRs where the petition is filed more than one year after
`
`service of “a complaint alleging infringement of the patent.” If “the patent”
`
`
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`5
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`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
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`encompasses any patent in a patent family, as Apple suggests, then each of Apple’s
`
`pending IPR petitions is barred because VirnetX served Apple with a complaint
`
`alleging infringement of patents in the same patent family more than one year
`
`before it filed its IPR petitions. While this may not be the result Apple intended, it
`
`is a necessary consequence of its interpretation of “the patent,” which should be
`
`consistently applied throughout the AIA.
`
`B.
`
`Joinder Will Significantly Increase the Complexity and Duration
`of the Microsoft IPR Proceedings and Prejudice VirnetX
`
`Even if the Board were statutorily permitted to join IPR proceedings on
`
`different patents, the Board should decline to do so here given the number of issues
`
`and their complexity. “In exercising its discretion to grant joinder, the Board
`
`considers the impact of both substantive issues and procedural matters on the
`
`proceedings, as well as other considerations.” Motorola Mobility LLC v. Softview
`
`LLC, IPR2013-00256, Paper No. 10 at 4 (June 20, 2013). Apple focuses on a
`
`handful of similarities between the ’181 and ’274 proceedings and then dubs the
`
`entire proceedings “highly similar” (see Paper No. 3 at 11-12), but the focus is
`
`more properly placed on the differences between the proceedings. Here, the
`
`differences will significantly impact both substantive and procedural issues.
`
`Substantively, joining Apple’s petitions to Microsoft’s would mean
`
`complicating Microsoft’s already complex petitions by more than tripling the
`
`
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`6
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`

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`Case No. IPR2014-00486
`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
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`number of claims at issue (from 13 to 42), nearly quadrupling the number of
`
`grounds of rejection (from 7 to 26), and doubling the number of references at issue
`
`(from 6 to 12). Procedurally, joinder will require the deposition of a new declarant
`
`with 639 pages of new testimony. It will also add Apple as an additional party,
`
`further complicating the proceedings at least by requiring coordination between
`
`Apple and Microsoft to address the large number of issues without duplication.
`
`Apple attempts to minimize these issues, but it cannot avoid that its request
`
`will complicate matters beyond the point of any alleged efficiencies to be gained.
`
`First, Apple misleadingly asserts that Patent Owner conceded the claims of the
`
`’181 and ’274 patent are patentably indistinct by filing terminal disclaimers during
`
`prosecution. Paper No. 3 at 9-11. It is well-accepted that terminal disclaimers are
`
`not an admission that claims are patentably indistinct. See M.P.E.P. § 804.02
`
`(citing Quad Envtl. Techs. Corp. v. Union Sanitary Dist., 946 F.2d 870, 874 (Fed.
`
`Cir. 1991)); see also Motionless Keyboard Co. v. Microsoft Corp., 486 F.3d 1376,
`
`1385 (Fed. Cir. 2007). Patent applicants often disagree with obviousness-type
`
`double patenting rejections, but they nonetheless file terminal disclaimers because
`
`it is an effective way to advance prosecution and often has little to no impact on
`
`patent term, particularly if each patent in a family has essentially the same term
`
`(twenty years from filing). Moreover, a terminal disclaimer cannot be used to
`
`overcome a double patenting rejection when the claimed inventions are identical.
`
`
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`7
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`Case No. IPR2014-00486
`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
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`See M.P.E.P. § 804.02. VirnetX never “conceded” that the claims of the ’181 and
`
`’274 patents are patentably indistinct, so the cornerstone of Apple’s argument is
`
`without merit.
`
`Apple next contends that more than tripling the number of claims at issue in
`
`the Microsoft proceedings (from 13 to 42) will not impact the case because of the
`
`“high degree of similarity” between the claims. See Paper No. 3 at 11-12. While
`
`Apple again focuses on a handful of similarities, it overlooks the many differences.
`
`Apple’s twenty-nine additional claims involve new claim terms and claim
`
`construction issues (e.g., secure name, unsecured name, secure name service, and
`
`secure communication link) not raised in Microsoft’s petitions. Apple also appears
`
`to contend that at least some of the new terms it identifies suffer from a lack of
`
`written description or enablement under 35 U.S.C. § 112. See Pet. at 7-8, 11.
`
`The Board has recognized that introducing new claims, claim terms, and the
`
`complications of claim construction weigh against joinder. In NetApp, Inc. v.
`
`PersonalWeb Technologies, LLC, the Board denied joinder, finding that the
`
`introduction of a single new claim “would raise substantive issues that are not
`
`before the Board” because it contained new claim terms and the Petitioner
`
`“raise[d] substantive issues that are related to lack of enablement and written
`
`description . . . .” IPR2013-00319, Paper No. 18 at 5 (July 22, 2013). The new
`
`
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`8
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`

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`Case No. IPR2014-00486
`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
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`claims, claim terms, and claim construction arguments Apple attempts to inject
`
`into Microsoft’s petitions weigh heavily against joinder.
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`Apple similarly dismisses its proposed addition of six new prior art
`
`references because the two new primary references are “familiar” to Patent Owner
`
`and the four new secondary references are “limited.” See Paper No. 3 at 13-14.
`
`However, Apple overlooks that these references result in nineteen new grounds of
`
`rejection. To the extent Apple relies on the same references as Microsoft, even
`
`Apple is forced to admit that due to the new patent and “different claims” in its
`
`petitions, it offers “different explanations” as to unpatentability. See id. at 13.3
`
`The new unpatentability analyses required to address all of the new
`
`references and grounds of rejection introduced by Apple will have a significant
`
`impact on the proceeding. Even in the instance where a Patent Owner may have
`
`been aware of newly asserted prior art references, the Board has weighed their
`
`addition against joinder. See Sony Corp. of Am. v. Network-1 Sec. Solutions, Inc.,
`
`IPR2013-00386, Paper No. 16 at 7 (July 29, 2013).
`
`
`3 Apple incorrectly contends its ’181 petitions “rely on the same four
`
`primary references” as the ’274 petitions. Two of these primary references (“RFC
`
`2543” and “Beser”) are, in fact, new references.
`
`
`
`9
`
`

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`Case No. IPR2014-00486
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`Next, Apple argues that briefing and discovery would be simplified because
`
`“only one expert witness per petitioner has provided testimony.” See Paper No. 3
`
`at 14-15. In fact, Apple submitted three different declarations from two witnesses.
`
`While one of Apple’s witnesses was also presented by Microsoft, Apple’s
`
`remaining witness submitted 639 pages of testimony. Far from promoting the
`
`“interest[s] of efficiency” (Paper No. 3 at 14), discovery will be greatly expanded.
`
`Additionally, Apple’s suggestion that joint comments by Microsoft and Apple be
`
`provided on common grounds and separate comments where Apple and Microsoft
`
`diverge fails to meaningfully curtail briefing. As discussed above, Apple proposes
`
`only seven grounds that overlap with Microsoft’s petitions—the remaining
`
`nineteen grounds Apple proposes would require additional, separate briefing.
`
`Apple also contends that adding 29 new claims and 19 new grounds of
`
`rejection will have no impact on the trial schedule given its timely motion for
`
`joinder. See Paper No. 3 at 14. But joinder on the scale that Apple proposes—
`
`involving a wholesale expansion of the issues and claims involved in the Microsoft
`
`petitions—without any extension of the schedule would prejudice VirnetX. The
`
`additional patent, claims, references, grounds for rejection, and declarations would
`
`not only justify, but virtually require an extension of time to ensure sufficient time
`
`to address the new issues. The prejudice is compounded when one considers that
`
`Apple and Microsoft maintain at least seven other IPR petitions against VirnetX’s
`
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`10
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`patents4 (i.e., IPR2014-00237, -00238, -00401, -00405, -00481, -00482,
`
`and -00558). See NetApp, IPR2013-00319, Paper No. 18 at 7. Thus, the impact to
`
`the schedule would be significant.
`
`Finally, Apple proposes combining six proceedings where Apple and
`
`Microsoft would enjoy expanded page limits. Paper No. 3 at 14-15. Meanwhile,
`
`VirnetX, which would ordinarily have 360 total pages for its six Patent Owner
`
`responses, would apparently be limited to 60 total pages in the combined
`
`proceedings. This constraint is so restrictive that it would be tantamount to a
`
`deprivation of due process rights by providing an inadequate opportunity to
`
`address the many issues raised in the six proceedings. It provides yet another
`
`reason why the Board should reject Apple’s proposal.
`
`C. Apple Will Not Be Prejudiced if the Board Denies Joinder
`Apple faces no prejudice if the Board declines to join its petitions of the
`
`’181 and ’274 patents to Microsoft’s ’274 petitions. Apple already has an inter
`
`partes reexamination challenge to the ’181 patent pending before the Office. That
`
`reexamination addresses every claim of the ’181 patent and has references that
`
`overlap with those in Apple’s IPR petitions. In addition, Apple is separately
`
`
`4 VirnetX further maintains that Apple is an unnamed real party-in-interest
`
`and privy in seven petitions filed by RPX (i.e., IPR2014-00171 through -00177).
`
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`11
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`Case No. IPR2014-00486
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`challenging the ’181 patent in district court, providing Apple with two vehicles for
`
`challenging the ’181 patent. It does not need and is not entitled to a third. Finally,
`
`even if joinder is denied, Apple may continue to pursue its petitions against the
`
`’274 patent. Denying the motion for joinder, therefore, will not prejudice Apple.
`
`Joinder of Apple’s Time-Barred Petitions Is Statutorily Barred
`
`D.
`Institution of Apple IPRs is barred by 35 U.S.C. § 315(b) because Apple was
`
`served with a complaint more than one year before it filed its IPRs. See supra
`
`Section III. Joinder is only permitted if the Board first determines that Apple’s
`
`petition warrants institution. 35 U.S.C. § 315(c) (“the Director, in his or her
`
`discretion, may join . . . any person who properly files a petition under section 311
`
`that the Director . . . determines warrants the institution of an inter partes review
`
`under section 314”). Because Apple’s untimeliness precludes institution under
`
`§ 315(b), it also precludes joinder under § 315(c). The Board, however, has
`
`interpreted the last sentence of § 315(b) to mean that “the one-year time bar does
`
`not apply” if a party filing a time-barred petition requests joinder. See IPR2013-
`
`00071, Paper 17 at 5. VirnetX respectfully disagrees with this interpretation.
`
`The last sentence of 35 U.S.C. § 315(b) states that “[t]he time limitation set
`
`forth in the preceding sentence shall not apply to a request for joinder under
`
`subsection (c).” The AIA, and indeed § 315 itself, distinguishes between petitions
`
`for inter partes review and requests for joinder. The last sentence of § 315(b),
`
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`however, provides an exception to the one-year bar only for a request for joinder,
`
`not for a petition for inter partes review. Thus, the one-year bar continues to apply
`
`to all petitions, even in the joinder context. The request-for-joinder exception of
`
`§ 315(b) applies only when two timely petitions are filed, but the request for
`
`joinder is made more than a year after being served with a complaint.
`
`This reading makes sense because joinder is not available until after an IPR
`
`has been instituted. 35 U.S.C. § 315(c). Since it can take up to six months for an
`
`institution decision, it is likely that many requests for joinder will occur more than
`
`one year after being served with a complaint. The statutory language addresses
`
`this concern. It does not, however, provide a backdoor for time-barred petitions to
`
`be instituted through joinder. Such a view is contrary to Congress’s intent to avoid
`
`serial harassment of patent owners, which particularly applies to parties like Apple
`
`who have already had ample opportunity to present validity challenges in both
`
`district court and reexamination. Ex. 2003 at 72 (a goal of the inter partes review
`
`laws is to “prevent[ ] the serial harassment of patent holders.”).
`
`Permitting untimely petitions to be instituted through joinder is also contrary
`
`to the joinder statute. Under 35 U.S.C. § 315(c), “the Director, in his or her
`
`discretion, may join as a party to that inter partes review any person who properly
`
`files a petition under section 311.” (Emphasis added.) Senator Kyl addressed the
`
`meaning of the term “properly files,” stating that “time deadlines for filing
`
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`Case No. IPR2014-00486
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`petitions must be complied with in all cases.” Ex. 2004, 154 Cong. Rec. S9988
`
`(daily ed. Sep. 27, 2008). Section 315(c) is consistent with this view because it
`
`requires compliance with § 311, which in turn requires compliance with the other
`
`provisions of Title 35, Chapter 31 of the U.S. Code, including the timeliness
`
`provisions. 35 U.S.C. § 311 (“Subject to the provisions of this chapter, a person
`
`who is not the owner of a patent may file with the Office a petition to institute an
`
`inter partes review of the patent.”).
`
`The Board has recognized that § 311 limits joinder under § 315(c), but
`
`disregards the portion of § 311 that also requires compliance with other provisions
`
`of Chapter 31. Dell, Inc. v. Network-1 Sec. Solutions, Inc., IPR2013-00071, Paper
`
`No. 17 at 5 (July 29, 2013) (“Section 315(c) refers only to ‘section 311,’ not to any
`
`other portions of the statute or portions of the statute referenced in Section 311.”).
`
`This interpretation is incorrect, as it disregards the plain statutory language. The
`
`Board’s interpretation would also mean that other provisions of Chapter 31 do not
`
`apply to petitions when joinder is requested, such as the petition requirements of
`
`§ 312(a). The statute does not permit this, so the Board’s interpretation is
`
`incorrect. The plain language of §§ 315(b) and (c) prohibit joinder.
`
`
`
`14
`
`

`

`Case No. IPR2014-00486
`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
`
`
`E. Apple’s ’181 Proceedings Should Not Be Joined to Its Own ’274
`Proceedings
`
`While the Board should decline joinder on each of the above grounds, the
`
`Board should also decline to join Apple’s ’181 proceedings with its own ’274
`
`proceedings. If this type of joinder were permissible, it would allow a party barred
`
`under Section 315(b) to avoid the bar by first seeking inter partes review of a
`
`patent on which it is not barred and then seeking joinder of an inter partes review
`
`on a patent on which it is barred. Petitioners could easily subvert the Section
`
`315(b) bar for any patent having a family member that was not asserted more than
`
`one year before the IPR petition was filed. There is no indication that Congress
`
`intended to provide this loophole, and this loophole does not exist under a proper
`
`interpretation of the AIA. (See supra Section IV.D.) Apple—and subsequent
`
`petitioners—should not be allowed to manipulate these proceedings in this
`
`unintended and statutorily-prohibited manner.
`
`V. CONCLUSION
`For these reasons, the Board should deny Apple’s motion for joinder.
`
`Respectfully submitted,
`
` /Joseph E. Palys/
`Joseph E. Palys
`Registration No. 46,508
`Counsel for VirnetX Inc.
`
`
`
`
`
`15
`
`

`

`Case No. IPR2014-00486
`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
`
`
`APPENDIX
`
`RESPONSE TO APPLE’S STATEMENT OF MATERIAL FACTS
`
`
`
`Most of Apple’s “material facts” are legally immaterial to the joinder issues
`
`at hand. The responses below are not meant to imply that VirnetX agrees that any
`
`statement is “material.”
`
`1.
`
`U.S. Patent No. 8,051,181 (the ’181 patent) issued on November 1,
`
`2011 from U.S. Application No. 11/679,416 (the ’416 application). Ex. 1025.
`
`Response: Admitted.
`
`2.
`
`U.S. Patent No. 7,987,274 (the ’274 patent) issued on July 26, 2011
`
`from U.S. Application No. 11/839,987 (the ’987 application). Ex. 1027.
`
`Response: Admitted.
`
`3.
`
`U.S. Patent No. 7,188,180 (the ’180 patent) issued on March 6, 2007
`
`from U.S. Application No. 10/702,486 (the ’486 application). Ex. 1001.
`
`Response: Admitted.
`
`4.
`
`The ’181 and ’274 patents each claim benefit, inter alia, to the ’180
`
`patent (i.e., to the ’486 application), and to earlier filed applications to which the
`
`’180 patent claims benefit, including, inter alia, U.S. Application No. 09/504,783
`
`filed on February 15, 2000. See Exs. 1001, 1025 & 1027.
`
`Response: Admitted.
`
`5.
`
`The ’180, ’274 and ’181 patents have a nearly identical disclosure. Id.
`
`

`

`Case No. IPR2014-00486
`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
`
`
`Response: Denied to the extent that the patent disclosures also include
`
`the claims, which are different in each patent.
`
`6.
`
`The ’181 patent is terminally disclaimed over the ’274 patent. Ex.
`
`1026 at 797, 1045.
`
`Response: Admitted that VirnetX filed a terminal disclaimer in the
`
`’416 application over the ’987 application. Ex. 1026 at 795, 1045.
`
`7.
`
`The ’181 patent is terminally disclaimed over the ’180 patent. Ex.
`
`1026 at 795, 1045.
`
`Response: Admitted that VirnetX filed a terminal disclaimer in the
`
`’416 application over the ’180 patent. Ex. 1026 at 797, 1045.
`
`8.
`
`The ’274 patent is terminally disclaimed over the ’181 patent. Ex.
`
`1028 at 634, 2741.
`
`Response: Admitted that VirnetX filed a terminal disclaimer in the
`
`’987 application over the ’416 application. Ex. 1028 at 634, 2741.
`
`9.
`
`On April 8, 2010, claims 2, 24, 26 and 28-30 of the ’416 application
`
`(later issuing as claims 2, 24, 26, 28, 29 and 1, respectively of the ’181 patent)
`
`were rejected for obviousness-type double patenting over claim 1 of the ’987
`
`application (which later issued as claim 1 of the ’274 patent). Ex. 1026 at 783-785.
`
`
`
`2
`
`

`

`Case No. IPR2014-00486
`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
`
`
`Response: Admitted with the clarification that the claims were rejected
`
`on the basis of provisional non-statutory obviousness-type double
`
`patenting.
`
`10. Also on April 8, 2010, claims 2, 24, 26 and 28-30 of the ’416
`
`application (later issuing as claims 2, 24, 26, 28, 29 and 1, respectively of the ’181
`
`patent) were rejected for obviousness-type double patenting over claim 1 of the
`
`’180 patent. Ex. 1026 at 783-785.
`
`Response: Admitted with the clarification that the claims were rejected
`
`on the basis of non-statutory obviousness-type double patenting.
`
`11. On October 8, 2010, in its response to the two double patenting
`
`rejections, Patent Owner did not dispute the merits of either finding of
`
`obviousness-type double patenting. Instead, Patent Owner argued the rejections
`
`should be withdrawn because it had terminally disclaimed the ’181 patent over
`
`each of the ’274 and ’180 patents. Ex. 1026 at 799, 805-816.
`
`Response: Admitted that on October 8, 2010, Patent Owner stated that
`
`it “submits herewith [] terminal disclaimer[s] to overcome” the non-
`
`statutory obviousness-type double patenting rejections of claims 2, 24,
`
`26, and 28-30 of the ’416 application and further stated that “[t]he
`
`absence of a reply to a specific rejection, issue, or comment does not
`
`
`
`3
`
`

`

`Case No. IPR2014-00486
`Patent Owner’s Opposition to Apple’s Motion for Joinder
`
`
`signify agreement with or concession of that rejection, issue, or
`
`comment.” Ex. 1026 at 815. Otherwise, denied.
`
`12. Also on October 8, 2010, Patent Owner filed terminal disclaimers in
`
`the ’181 patent relative to each of the ’180 and ’274 patents. Ex. 1026 at 795
`
`(regarding the ’180 patent) and at 797 (regarding the ’987 application later issued
`
`as the ’274 patent). The terminal discl

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