BioSpyder Technologies Incorporated v. HTG Molecular Diagnostics Incorporated ( 2022 )

1 WO 2 3 4 5 6 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 7 FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA 8 9 BioSpyder Technologies Incorporated, No. CV-21-00034-TUC-RCC 10 Plaintiff, ORDER 11 v. 12 HTG Molecular Diagnostics Incorporated, 13 Defendant. 14 15 Pending before the Court is Defendant HTG Molecular Diagnostics, Inc.'s 16 unopposed Motion for Vacatur. (Doc. 252.) The parties have reached a confidential 17 agreement to resolve this matter. (Id.; Doc. 250.) As part of the terms of that agreement, 18 and pursuant to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 54(b) and 60(b), the parties seek to 19 vacate the Court's March 30, 2022 Order (Doc. 198) granting Plaintiff BioSpyder 20 Technologies, Inc.'s Cross Motion for Summary Judgment of Patent Noninfringement 21 (Doc. 101) and denying Defendant's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment of 22 Infringement (Doc. 83). 23 A court has "equitable discretion when reviewing its own judgments." Am. Games, 24 Inc. v. Trade Prods., Inc., 142 F.3d 1164, 1170 (9th Cir. 1998). Rule 60(b) permits a 25 court to grant relief from any final judgment or order if "the judgment has been satisfied, 26 released, or discharged . . . or applying it prospectively is no longer equitable," or for 27 "any other reason that justifies relief." Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(b)(5)–(6). The court must 28 consider whether to vacate its judgment "in light of 'the consequences and attendant 1 hardships of dismissal or refusal to dismiss' and 'the competing values of finality of 2 judgment and right to relitigation of unreviewed disputes.'" Am. Games, Inc., 142 F.3d at 3 1168 (quoting Dilley v. Gunn, 64 F.3d 1365, 1370–71 (9th Cir. 1995)). 4 Although settlement does not require a court to vacate its judgment, when vacatur 5 is "contemplated as part of settlement . . . the Court should, where appropriate, support 6 the negotiations and terms of settlement." Click Ent., Inc. v. JYP Ent. Co., Civ. No. 07– 7 00342 ACK–KSC, 2009 WL 3030212, at *2 (D. Haw. Sept. 22, 2009) (citing Ahern v. 8 Cent. Pac. Freight Lines, 846 F.2d 47, 48 (9th Cir. 1988)). The parties here have 9 indicated that they entered into a settlement agreement, the terms of which include 10 seeking vacatur of the Court's March 30, 2022 Order. Defendant HTG also states it "has a 11 significant interest in vacatur, given that under the settlement it relinquished its right of 12 appellate review of the Court's interlocutory Order (ECF No. 198) finding no literal 13 infringement based on a highly contested claim construction." (Doc. 252 at 6.) The Court 14 finds that the first factor concerning the consequences and hardships of dismissal or 15 refusal to dismiss weighs in favor of vacatur given the parties' agreement and the policy 16 of encouraging settlement where possible. See Ahern, 846 F.2d at 48 ("The Ninth Circuit 17 is firmly committed to the rule that the law favors and encourages compromise 18 settlements."). 19 The second factor also weighs in favor of vacatur. Although highly contested and 20 the subject of Defendant's Motion for Reconsideration, "the scope of the '564 Patent is 21 highly unlikely to be relitigated." (Doc. 252 at 8.) The terms of the settlement preclude 22 appellate review and seek to reach final resolution in this matter. (Id.) Thus, the 23 competing values of finality of judgment and right to relitigation of unreviewed disputes 24 favor vacatur. 25 Moreover, "[t]he standard for granting a motion to vacate under Rule 54(b) is less 26 rigid than that under Rule 60(b) governing vacation of final judgments." Persistence 27 Software, Inc. v. Object People, Inc., 200 F.R.D. 626, 627 (N.D. Cal. 2001). Under Rule 28 54(b), a partial summary judgment order that does not dispose of all of the claims or || parties "may be revised at any time before the entry of a judgment adjudicating all the 2|| claims and all the parties’ rights and liabilities." See Fed. R. Civ. P. 54(b). The Court's || March 30, 2022 Order was interlocutory because, although it granted summary judgment to Plaintiff BioSpyder on patent noninfringement, it did not dispose of all the || counterclaims. 6 Accordingly, pursuant to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 54(b) and 60(b), as well as the parties’ settlement agreement, 8 IT IS ORDERED that Defendant's Motion for Vacatur is GRANTED. (Doc. 9|| 252.) The Court's Order is VACATED. (Doc. 198.) The Clerk of Court shall docket || accordingly. 11 Dated this 21st day of November, 2022. 12 13 , 4 14 _fp Dp — IN Corl 15 Honorable Raner ©. Collins 16 senior United States District Judge 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 -3-