Gilead's Opening Brief -- Seeking A $15.5 Million Award In Patent Legal Fees, Against Merck -- Re Hep C Cures Sovaldi® and Harvoni®

UPDATED: Late Sunday Night -- Those Young Cubs are still alive. Yes! But first, an unrelated (scientific method) note: it is best to acknowledge one's bias at the outset. To that end, as I reflect upon my Cubbies' chances, five thirty eight.com now has it that HRC has a greater chance of losing the White House -- than do the Cubs, of winning the Series. Which is to say (in both cases). . . not much of one, at all -- to be clear. So, if my bias is showing, as to the Cubs, please forgive me -- I will certainly still cheer, tonight -- for hope is a good thing -- and perhaps the best of all things. . . .

To the subject proper, then: my backgrounder is here, but the legal team at Gilead marched forward at the end of the week, in San Jose's federal District Court, defending the reasonableness of a $15.5 million award of legal fees against Merck, in an opening brief on the topic.

The full brief is linked here (as a 22 page PDF file) -- but here's the introductory bit:

. . . .On June 6, 2016, this Court issued its order holding that "based on Merck’s numerous unconscionable acts, including lying, unethical business conduct, and litigation misconduct, the doctrine of unclean hands barred Merck from asserting the ’499 and ’712 Patents against Gilead." (ECF No. 457 at 1.) Thereafter, Gilead moved for an award of attorneys’ fees pursuant to 35 U.S.C. 285, which this Court granted on August 11, 2016. (ECF No. 434.) This Court then instructed the parties to brief the amount of Gilead’s reasonable fees. . . .

Updated totals for Fish’s reasonable hours, reflecting additional work since the time of Gilead’s motion and reflecting adjustments made during the meet and confer process are attached hereto. (See Singer Decl. Ex. 1.) As shown therein, the lodestar amount for work performed by Fish is $14,173,500. (Id.) The lodestar amount for work performed by Deloitte (which is unchanged) is $1,365,470, (ECF 436 Ex. C.), for a total of $15,538,970. . . .

Now you know -- on a cool, cloudy early voting Sunday here. We are -- in truth -- also mightily struggling to fight off feelings of many a prior decades' disappointments -- bearing down on our shoulders now. . . praying that this is more than just a 21^th Century Mudsville. . . we do find it soothing, and fitting -- that we will need to invoke the gray ghosts of Tinker, Evers and Chance, tonight -- on nearly Halloween 2016, just to live on, past Halloween night.

And so -- we will leave the hopeful masthead in place (we still "only" need three wins -- but now we need three in a row). Hopefully (for "hope may be the best of things") -- it will be onward, to the "Mistake By The Lake" that is Cleveland(!), by Tuesday. With a quick run back up to Milwaukee, later this afternoon -- we are smiling, just the same. . . .

नमस्ते