Texas Judge Orders Microsoft To Stop Selling Word In The US

Headline Legal News

Courthouse News reports a federal judge in Texas fined Microsoft $290 million and ordered it to stop selling Word in the United States, because the word-processing software violates a patent held by a small company called i4i. Toronto-based i4i, which has about 30 employees, said Microsoft violated a patent tied to Extensible Markup Language or XML, a special alphabet that allows computers to interpret text.

The Canadian company filed a patent for a "customized XML" tool in 1998.

Because Word 2003 and Word 2007 have the ability to process XML documents with custom XML elements, i4i accused Microsoft of patent infringement. Microsoft insisted the patent was invalid.

In May, a jury ruled for i4i and awarded it $200 million in damages.

Microsoft moved for judgment despite the verdict, but US District Judge Leonard Davis in Tyler, Texas, sided with i4i, saying Microsoft knowingly infringed on the smaller company's patent.

Related listings

  • Top Madoff Aid Pleads Guilty

    Top Madoff Aid Pleads Guilty

    Headline Legal News 08/12/2009

    According to the New York Law Journal, Bernard L. Madoff's right-hand man pleaded guilty Tuesday and is cooperating in the government's investigation into the largest Ponzi scheme in history. Frank DiPascali Jr. waived indictment and entered guilty p...

  • Suspended Boston Cop Sues City

    Suspended Boston Cop Sues City

    Headline Legal News 08/06/2009

    Courthouse News reports that a Boston police officer who called Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. a "banana-eating jungle monkey" in an email he sent to a Boston Globe columnist says the city and its police commissioner violated his rights by s...

  • 11-Word Press Snippets Might Violate Copyright

    11-Word Press Snippets Might Violate Copyright

    Headline Legal News 07/30/2009

    According to Courthouse News, a Danish press-clipping company could be violating copyright by printing out 11-word snippets of news articles, the European Court of Justice ruled. The Luxembourg-based court remanded the issue to Denmark for a determin...

Our Eugene Oregon Bankruptcy Practice

Since 2005, Erin Uhlemann has helped individuals and families facing financial difficulties file for bankruptcy relief. Erin's compassion and understanding of the law have helped hundreds of Oregonians achieve a financial fresh start. She started Willamette Valley Bankruptcy to focus on helping clients with bankruptcy and debt issues in the Lane County Area. Erin understands that choosing a bankruptcy attorney who makes you feel comfortable and confident can be as difficult as deciding whether to file a bankruptcy case. Because she knows that filing bankruptcy is not something that you planned to do or look forward to doing, Erin strives to make the process as easy as possible.

Because most people facing bankruptcy do not have extra money to pay fees, Willamette Valley Bankruptcy offers low upfront fees and will work with you to set up affordable payment plans to pay attorney fees and court filing fees. Consultations are always free so that you can get the answers you need before making any sort of financial commitment. If you have questions about attorney fees and payment plans, you can call or email today to get these questions answered.

Business News

New York Adoption and Family Law Attorneys Our attorneys have represented adoptive parents, birth parents, and adoption agencies. >> read