Shire Development LLC v. LCS Group, LLC
Denying a request from patent owner's counsel to withdraw
from an inter partes review (IPR), the U.S. Patent and
Trademark Office Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB or Board)
refused to allow the inventor to proceed pro se because
the real party in interest was a juristic entity. Shire
Development LLC v. LCS Group, LLC, Case No. IPR2014-00739
(PTAB, Nov. 21, 2014) (Green, APJ).
LCS Group, LLC, a juristic entity, was designated as the patent
owner and real party in interest in the Patent Owner's
Mandatory Notices and represented by counsel in the IPR proceeding.
The inventor of the patent at issue, ostensibly with patent
owner's approval, wanted to represent himself in the
proceeding. Counsel's withdrawal from an IPR proceeding
requires authorization from the Board. 37 C.F.R. § 42.10(e).
The Board refused to allow patent owner's counsel to withdraw
because the patent owner and real party-in interest was a juristic
entity.
