8110 Gatehouse Road
Suite 100 East
Falls Church, VA 22042-1248 USA

Telephone: +1-703-205-8000

Unified Patents, Inc. v. Parallel Iron, LLC

Paper 7, October 15, 2013

IPR2013-00639 (Patent 7,197,662)

[The Board may grant pro hac vice admission to an unregistered practitioner upon showing of good cause and provided certain conditions are met.]

FACTS

The Board authorized the parties to file motions for pro hac vice admissions and issued this order to update and supersede its prior order to that effect in light of the publication of the new Rules of Professional Conduct. 78 Fed. Reg. 20180 (Apr. 3, 2013).

HOLDING

The Board noted that it may grant a motion for pro hac vice admission to an individual not registered to practice before the USPTO upon showing of good cause and provided that the lead counsel is a registered practitioner. The Board specified that the parties must file their motions no sooner than twenty one days after the service of the petition and follow the following guidelines as to their content:

  • The motions must contain a statement of facts showing good cause for the Board’s recognition of pro hac vice counsel;
  • The motions must be accompanied by an affidavit of the individual seeking to appear before the Board attesting that the individual is a member of the Bar in good standing, has not been suspended or disbarred, has not been denied admission to practice, sanctioned, or cited for contempt by any court, will comply with the Office Patent Trial Practice Guide and the Board’s Rules of Practice for Trials, be subject to the USPTO Rules of Professional Conduct and disciplinary jurisdiction, and that an individual is familiar with the subject matter of the proceeding;
  • The affidavit must also specify any other proceedings before the Office for which the individual has applied to appear pro hac vice in the last three years.

TAKEAWAY

The Board may grant pro hac vice admission to an unregistered practitioner upon showing of good cause. The motion for pro hac vice admission must be filed no sooner than twenty one days after the service of the petition and must be accompanied by an affidavit with specified content by the individual seeking to appear before the Board.

 

To view full Order click here.