Office

Calgary

Date

June 17, 2019

Time of event

Midday

Patent Litigation in the Oil & Gas Sector – Simultaneously defending and prosecuting patent cases against a litigation finance company in the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench and the Federal Court

Justice Southcott of the Federal Court recently granted Aux Sable’s action to impeach claims 9-10 of JL Energy’s patent relating to the operation of the Alliance pipeline. JL Energy claimed a monopoly over the transportation of “natural gas liquids” by pipeline over a wide range of temperatures and pressures. JL Energy claimed this monopoly regardless of whether the rich gas was indigenous or was manipulated prior to transportation.

Justice Southcott held that JL Energy’s claimed monopoly went too far and encompassed gas mixtures broader than any invention and that didn’t work to achieve any efficient transportation.

Topics to be discussed include:

• The most recent decision of the Federal Court on the extent of patent rights in the oil & gas sector;
• Successfully opposing litigation finance companies, in this case Bentham IMF Capital Limited;
• The Alliance Pipeline – A practical update on litigation against JL Energy;
• Tips for successfully coordinating related actions in multiple jurisdictions; and
• State of the art for Obviousness after Aux Sable v JL Energy.

For questions about this event, please contact [email protected].