Although you might not think so, given the proliferation of
litigation, courts are actually very particular about who can bring
a lawsuit. In order for a plaintiff to file a lawsuit, it must have
'standing' or put another way, "A court may exercise
jurisdiction only if a plaintiff has standing to sue on the date it
files suit." A recent US case examined when a patent
licensee has standing to sue for patent infringement.
According to the US court in Luminara Worldwide, LLC v.
Liown Electronics Co.: Even if the patent holder does not
transfer formal legal title, the patent holder may effect a
transfer of ownership for the purposes of standing in a lawsuit if
it conveys "all substantial rights in the patent to the
transferee." One of those "substantial rights" must
include an "exclusive license" to practice the patent in
question. In the event that a licensee obtains an exclusive license
and all substantial rights, then the licensee is effectively
treated just like a
