Event Notes: Current Approaches To RAND and FRAND – Reflecting, It’s A Wide, Wide World
This presentation material is provided by The Honorable James L. Robart as a courtesy to the WSPLA members. The use of the slides and any information contained therein by the recipient does not constitute legal advice.
WSPLA is proud to present the Honorable James L. Robart, Senior United States District Judge of the US District Court for the Western District of Washington. Judge Robart was nominated to a seat on the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington in 2003. He received a unanimous “well-qualified” rating from the American Bar Association’s Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary. Judge Robart was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate on June 17, 2004, and received his commission on June 21, 2004. He took senior status on June 28, 2016. Prior to the bench, Judge Robart was in private practice in Seattle with the law firm of Lane Powell from 1973 to 2003.
Judge Robart will be presenting on the topic of RAND (Reasonable And Non-Discriminatory) and FRAND (Fair, Reasonable And Non-Discriminatory) licensing involving SEP (Standard Essential Patent) assets. In the relative few years since the Microsoft v. Motorola decision (2012), standard setting organizations have struggled to balance the interests of various companies involved with setting said standards and companies greatly affected by the standards. Between injunctive relief, unreasonableness, and counterclaims, navigating RAND and FRAND is fraught with peril. Judge Robart will speak to his observation from the bench and from the perspective of the District Court that initially decided Microsoft v. Motorola.