Amended Infringement Contentions Stricken - Not Related to Markman Ruling

Nike, Inc. v. Adidas America Inc., 479 F.Supp.2d 664 (E.D.Tex., 2007)
Judge: Ron Clark
Holding: Motion to Strike Plaintiff's Amended Infringement Contentions GRANTED
Plaintiff claimed that it amended its contentions as a result of the Court's claims construction.  Judge Clark held that his construction of the term “vertically-projecting columnar support element” was not so different from the parties' proposed constructions as to warrant the need for amended infringement contentions. This case is set for trial in June 2007, and the amended contentions were filed only forty-four days before the discovery deadline. They provided, for the first time, the Court noted, a statement of each element of each asserted claim that is allegedly present under the doctrine of equivalents in the accused instrumentality. Under these circumstances, the Court declined to allow Nike's amended infringement contentions.