Nine judges in the Southern District will be part of a pilot program designed to enhance judicial expertise in patent cases. Judges P. Kevin Castel, Denise Cote, Thomas P. Griesa, John G. Koeltl, Colleen McMahon, Jed S. Rakoff, Shira A. Scheindlin, Laura Taylor Swain and Robert W. Sweet will take part in the 10-year program, which begins immediately and is managed by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts.
Under the program, patent cases will be assigned randomly as usual, but non-participating judges will have 30 days to decline the case, which would then be randomly assigned to one of the nine judges. “The Southern District has one of the largest patent case loads in the nation; as a result, our judges are already well-versed in patent law,” said Chief Judge Loretta A. Preska. “However, this pilot will further refine the court’s expertise, and it will ultimately help us better serve patent litigants.” The Southern District is one of 14 courts around the country participating in the project.
