`Tel: 571-272-7822
`
`
`
`
`
`Paper 23
` Entered: June 22, 2018
`
`UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
`____________
`
`BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
`____________
`
`CISCO SYSTEMS, INC.,
`Petitioner,
`
`v.
`
`FATPIPE NETWORKS PRIVATE LTD.,
`Patent Owner.
`____________
`
`Case IPR2017-01846
`Patent 7,406,048 B2
`____________
`
`
`
`Before STACEY G. WHITE, MICHELLE N. WORMMEESTER, and
`JOHN F. HORVATH, Administrative Patent Judges.
`
`WHITE, Administrative Patent Judge.
`
`
`
`ORDER
`Granting Joint Motion to Terminate
`37 C.F.R. §42.72
`and
`Granting Request to Treat Settlement Documents as Business
`Confidential Information
`37 C.F.R. § 42.74(c)
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`IPR2017-01846
`Patent 7,406,048 B2
`
`
`On June 13, 2018, Patent Owner and Petitioner (collectively
`“Parties”) filed a joint motion to terminate the above-identified inter partes
`review proceeding. Paper 21 (“Motion”). The Parties also filed a copy of
`their settlement agreement covering, inter alia, settlement of this inter partes
`review proceeding. Ex. 1018 (“Settlement Agreement”). The Parties
`represent in their joint motion that the filed copy of the Settlement
`Agreement is a true and correct copy, and that “[t]here are no collateral
`agreements or understandings made in connection with, or in contemplation
`of, the termination of this proceeding.” Motion 1.1 The Parties additionally
`filed a request to treat the Settlement Agreement as business confidential
`information. Paper 22 (“Request”). For the reasons discussed below, we
`grant the Parties’ Motion and Request.
`Under 35 U.S.C. § 317(a), “[a]n inter partes review instituted under
`this chapter shall be terminated with respect to any petitioner upon the joint
`request of the petitioner and patent owner, unless the Office has decided the
`merits of the proceeding before the request for termination is filed.” The
`Office has not yet decided the merits of this proceeding, and a final written
`decision has not been entered. Accordingly, we determine good cause exists
`to terminate this proceeding.
`Under 37 C.F.R. § 42.74(c), “[a] party to a settlement may request
`that the settlement be treated as business confidential information and be
`kept separate from the files of an involved patent or application.” After
`reviewing the Settlement Agreement between the Parties, we find the
`
`
`1 The Parties did not number the pages in their Motion. For purposes of this
`Order, we have assigned page number 1 to the first page following the
`caption page.
`
`2
`
`
`
`IPR2017-01846
`Patent 7,406,048 B2
`
`Settlement Agreement contains confidential business information regarding
`the terms of settlement. We, therefore, determine that it is appropriate to
`treat the Settlement Agreement between Petitioner and Patent Owner as
`business confidential information pursuant to 37 C.F.R. § 42.74(c).
`
`
`ORDER
`
`It is hereby:
`ORDERED that the Joint Motion to Terminate (Paper 21), as to both
`Petitioner and Patent Owner, is granted;
`FURTHER ORDERED that the Joint Request (Paper 22) to treat the
`Settlement Agreement (Exhibit 1018) as business confidential information
`under 37 C.F.R. § 42.74(c) is granted; and
`FURTHER ORDERED that this proceeding is terminated with respect
`to both Petitioner and Patent Owner.
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`3
`
`
`
`IPR2017-01846
`Patent 7,406,048 B2
`
`For PETITIONER:
`David L. McCombs
`Theodore M. Foster
`David O’Brien
`Raghav Bajaj
`John R. Emerson
`HAYNES AND BOONE, LLP
`David.mccombs.irp@haynesboone.com
`Ipr.theo.foster@haynesboone.com
`David.obrien.ipr@haynesboone.com
`Raghav.bajaj.ipr@haynesboone.com
`Russell.emerson.ipr@haynesboone.com
`
`For PATENT OWNER:
`Robert C. Mattson
`Sameer Gokhale
`Aldo Martinez
`OBLON, McCLELLAND, MAIER & NEUSTADT, LLP
`CPDocketMattson@oblon.com
`CPDocketGokhale@oblon.com
`CPDocketMartinez@oblon.com
`
`
`
`4
`
`