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Keywords

injunctionwillpatentcorporationdeclaratory judgment

patent

Related Cases

William Gluckin & Co. v. International Playtex Corp., 407 F.2d 177, 160 U.S.P.Q. 513

Facts

International Playtex Corporation filed a patent infringement action against F. W. Woolworth & Co. in the Northern District of Georgia, claiming that Woolworth was selling an infringing brassiere. Subsequently, William Gluckin & Co., the manufacturer of the brassiere, initiated a declaratory judgment action against Playtex in the Southern District of New York, seeking a declaration of patent invalidity and non-infringement. The court had to determine which of the two actions should take precedence.

On April 25, 1968, Playtex brought a patent infringement action against F. W. Woolworth & Co. (Woolworth), alleging in its complaint that Woolworth was selling a brassiere which infringed a patent which it owned.

Issue

The main legal issue was whether the preliminary injunction restraining Playtex from continuing its Georgia suit should be upheld, given the existence of a second-filed action in New York.

The question is which takes priority over the other.

Rule

The general rule in this Circuit is that the first suit should have priority unless there is a showing of balance of convenience in favor of the second action or special circumstances justify giving priority to the second.

The general rule in this Circuit is that, as a principle of sound judicial administration, the first suit should have priority, ‘absent the showing of balance of convenience in favor of the second action.’

Analysis

The court applied the 'customer suit' exception to the first-filed rule, determining that the New York action should take precedence because Woolworth was merely a customer of Gluckin, the real party in interest. The court found that several factors indicated that New York was the more convenient forum, including the location of witnesses and the principal places of business of the parties involved. The court concluded that the balance of convenience favored the New York action.

Judge Motley found that there were factors of substance indicating that the balance of convenience supported priority for the second-filed suit.

Conclusion

The court affirmed the preliminary injunction, allowing the New York action to proceed while restraining Playtex from continuing its Georgia suit.

The decision below is affirmed.

Who won?

William Gluckin & Co. prevailed in the case because the court found that the New York action was the more appropriate forum for resolving the patent issues, thus justifying the injunction against Playtex.

Judge Motley held that since the first filed suit was against a customer rather than against Gluckin itself and since New York was the most convenient forum for resolving the questions of patent validity and infringement, special circumstances existed which justified giving priority to the second-filed suit.

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