Orion, the Hunted

"Orion IP is an intellectual holding company. It is a so-called 'non-practicing entity' which has not developed any inventions, does not make, sell, or distribute any products or services. It exists for the sole purpose of suing companies for patent infringement and attempting to license the various patents it has purchased from others."

Thus began the declaratory judgment complaint filed by Electrolux Home Products, Inc. last week against Orion IP. The new lawsuit was filed in August, Georgia (Southern District of Georgia), a place that hardly sees a patent case. Evidently, Orion sued a non-existent Electrolux entity -- twice. Surely, now Orion will amend their complaint and add the correct Electrolux entity. If you don't think any of the Texas judges would deny that, even though the date for doing so has passed, well, then you don't know the ED Texas judges very well!

The big question is whether Judge Lisa Wood is going to make the case stick. Others have tried this trick against patent "non-practicing entities" that have sued the wrong defendant. The judges in Northern California and Delaware haven't hesitated to dump their cases off on Eastern Texas in that fact pattern. What will Judge Wood do?