Delhi High Court - Orders
Interdigital Technology Corporation & ... vs Guangdong Oppo Mobile ... on 16 August, 2022
Author: Prathiba M. Singh
Bench: Prathiba M. Singh
$~17 & 18
* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
+ CS (COMM) 692/2021 & I.As. 17314-15/2021, 11485/2022, CC
No.9/2022
INTERDIGITAL TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
& ORS. ..... Plaintiff
Through: Mr. Pravin Anand, Mr. Siddhant
Chamola Ms. Vaishali Mittal and Ms.
Pallavi Bhatnagar, Advocates.
(M:9871736336) with Mr. Scott
Clark, Mr. Stephen J. Akerrley and
Dr. Jonathan Putnam in person.
versus
GUANGDONG OPPO MOBILE TELECOMMUNICATIONS
CORP. LTD. & ORS. ..... Defendants
Through: Ms. Julien George, Ms. Anu Paarcha,
Mr. Arjun Gadhoke, Mr. Avijit
Kumar, Mr. Aniruddh Bhatia, Ms. N.
Parvati and Ms. Prachi Sharma,
Advocates with Mr. Liu Chun, Client,
Mr. David Yurkerwich, Mr. Tobiaj
Hessel, German External counsel and
Ms. Franca Poll - Wolbeck, German
External Counsel.
(18) AND
+ CS (COMM) 707/2021 & I.As. 17456-57/2021, 11484/2022
INTERDIGITAL VC HOLDINGS INC & ORS. ..... Plaintiff
Through: Mr. Pravin Anand, Mr. Siddhant
Chamola Ms. Vaishali Mittal and Ms.
Pallavi Bhatnagar, Advocates.
(M:9871736336) with Mr. Scott
Clark, Mr. Stephen J. Akerrley and
Dr. Jonathan Putnam in person.
versus
Signature Not Verified
Digitally Signed CS (COMM) 692/2021 & 707/2021 Page 1 of 7
By:DEVANSHU JOSHI
Signing Date:22.08.2022
16:27:24
GUANGDONG OPPO MOBILE TELECOMMUNICATIONS
CORP. LTD & ORS. ..... Defendant
Through: Ms. Julien George, Ms. Anu Paarcha,
Mr. Arjun Gadhoke, Mr. Avijit
Kumar, Mr. Aniruddh Bhatia, Ms. N.
Parvati and Ms. Prachi Sharma,
Advocates with Mr. Liu Chun, Client,
Mr. David Yurkerwich, Mr. Tobiaj
Hessel, German External counsel and
Ms. Franca Poll - Wolbeck, German
External Counsel.
CORAM:
JUSTICE PRATHIBA M. SINGH
ORDER
% 16.08.2022
1. This hearing has been done through hybrid mode.
2. Pursuant to the previous order dated 25th July, 2022, certain queries had been put to the parties and their technical experts. Today, two experts i.e., Dr. Jonathan Putnam, on behalf of the Plaintiffs, and Mr. David Yurkerwich, on behalf of the Defendants, have appeared and explained the calculations pertaining to the offers and counter offers, to the Court. On the basis of the lumpsum offer made by the Defendants during the negotiations, and a perusal of a licence agreement with a similarly placed party and the calculations thereof, certain amounts on a per unit basis have also been calculated and submitted to the Court by the Plaintiffs.
3. Considering the submissions today, in order to enable the Defendants to have a fair opportunity to analyse the said agreement, a confidentiality club is constituted for the purpose of exchanging the copy of the agreement of the Plaintiffs with Licensee C and for exchanging any calculations relating to the said agreement, offers and counter-offers. The constitution of Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed CS (COMM) 692/2021 & 707/2021 Page 2 of 7 By:DEVANSHU JOSHI Signing Date:22.08.2022 16:27:24 confidentiality clubs is also provided for by Rule 17 of the Delhi High Court (Original Side) Rules, 2018 (hereinafter "Original Side Rules") and Rule 19 of the Delhi High Court Intellectual Property Rights Division Rules, 2022. Rule 19 reads as under:
"19. Confidentiality clubs and redaction of confidential information
(i) At any stage in a proceeding, the Court may constitute a confidentiality club or adopt such measures as appropriate, consisting of lawyers (external & in-house), experts as also nominated representatives of the parties, for the preservation and exchange of confidential information filed before the Court including documents, as per the Delhi High Court (Original Side) Rules, 2018.
Such nominated representatives of the parties, appointed to the Club, may inter alia, be persons who are not in charge of, or active in, the day-to- day business operations and management of the respective parties so as to maintain the integrity of the information so disclosed. The members so constituting the Club shall be bound to desist from disclosing, sharing or utilizing, including to third parties, the confidential or sensitive information that they may access, or become privy to, in the course of proceedings;
(ii) The Court may, upon a request made by way of an application, direct the redaction of such information (including documents) it deems to be confidential;
(iii) If any redacted pleading/document is sought to be filed as being confidential, a non-redacted version of the same may be filed in a sealed cover along with an application supporting such claim for redaction."
4. Accordingly, a confidentiality club is constituted consisting of the Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed CS (COMM) 692/2021 & 707/2021 Page 3 of 7 By:DEVANSHU JOSHI Signing Date:22.08.2022 16:27:24 following persons:
Category of Plaintiffs Defendants
Members
External Experts Dr. Jonathan Putnam 1. Mr. David
Yurkerwish
2. Mr. Matthew Sepe
Counsels 1. Mr. Pravin Anand 3. Mr. Saikrishna
2. Mr. Vaishali Mittal Rajagopal
3. Mr. Siddhant 4. Ms. Julien George
Chamola 5. Ms. Anu Paarcha
Foreign Counsels 1. Mr. Cordula 1. Mr. Tobias J.
Schumacher Hessel
2. Mr. Tim 2. Ms. Franca Poll-
Smentkowski Wolbeck
5. All persons mentioned above, constituting the confidentiality club, except Mr. Cordula Schumacher and Mr. Tim Smentkowski, are present through virtual hearing today. All persons including Mr. Cordula Schumacher and Mr. Tim Smentkowski, undertake to keep the information that they gather, which may be exchanged between the parties, fully confidential and not to reveal the same to any third party without the permission of this Court. The information shall also not be disclosed to the Defendants. It is made clear that the said members shall be bound by the applicable obligations prescribed in Annexure F to the Original Side Rules. The same read as under:
Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed CS (COMM) 692/2021 & 707/2021 Page 4 of 7 By:DEVANSHU JOSHI Signing Date:22.08.2022 16:27:24"Procedure to be followed in dealing with confidential documents/information Upon hearing of an application, the Court may allow constitution of a Confidentiality Club in the following manner:-
a) All documents/ information considered as confidential ("Confidential Documents/ Information") by the Court shall be permitted to be filed in a sealed cover to kept in the safe custody of Registrar General.
b) Each party shall nominate not more than three Advocates, who are not and have not been in-house lawyers of either party, and not more than two external experts, who shall constitute the Confidentiality Club. Members of the Confidentiality Club alone shall be entitled to inspect the Confidential Documents/ Information.
c) Members of the Confidentiality Club shall be allowed to inspect the Confidential Documents/ Information before the Registrar General, without making copies thereof. After the inspection, the Confidential Documents/ Information shall be resealed and kept in the custody of the Registrar General.
d) Members of the Confidentiality Club shall not make copies of, or disclose, or publish the contents of, the Confidential Documents/ Information to anyone else in any manner or by any means, or in any other legal proceedings and shall be bound by the orders of the Court in this behalf.
e) During recordal of evidence with respect to the Confidential Documents/ Information, only members of the Confidentiality Club shall be allowed to remain present.
f) During proceedings of the Court, when the Confidential Documents/ Information are being looked at or their contents discussed, only members of the Confidentiality Club shall be permitted to be present.
g) The Court may in its discretion and in an appropriate Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed CS (COMM) 692/2021 & 707/2021 Page 5 of 7 By:DEVANSHU JOSHI Signing Date:22.08.2022 16:27:24 case, permit copies of the Confidential Documents to be given to the opposite party after redacting confidential information therefrom, if such redaction be possible and not otherwise.
h) Any evidence by way of affidavit or witness statement containing confidential information derived from the Confidential Documents/ Information shall be kept in a sealed cover with the Registrar General and would be accessible only to the members of the Confidentiality Club. However, a party filing such evidence by way of affidavit shall, if so directed by the Court, give to the opposite party, a copy of such affidavit after redacting therefrom the confidential information, if such redaction is possible and not otherwise.
i) The Confidential Documents/ Information shall not be available for inspection after disposal of the matter, except to the Party producing the same. j) In cases where the Confidentiality Club is constituted or documents are directed to be kept confidential, the Court may consider extending the time for filing of pleadings. However, the same shall be within the overall limits prescribed by the applicable provisions."
6. Being bound by these provisions, the following information shall be exchanged, among the members of the confidentiality club,:
a. Copy of agreement between the Plaintiffs and Licensee C; b. Calculations of the amounts agreed by Licensee C, under the agreement entered into between the Plaintiffs and Licensee C; and c. Any other documents, related to the royalty negotiations between the parties, including calculation charts etc.
7. The mode of sharing of the aforementioned documents/information, shall be agreed upon among the members of the club within one week. Once Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed CS (COMM) 692/2021 & 707/2021 Page 6 of 7 By:DEVANSHU JOSHI Signing Date:22.08.2022 16:27:24 the modalities are agreed, the information shall be shared within one week thereafter by each of the parties with the other. If the parties wish to seek any other relevant information from the other side, for being shared amongst the members of the Club, they shall do so in writing, within one week.
8. The above directions shall be subject to further orders to be passed in the various applications including the applications filed by the Defendant seeking constitution of the confidentiality club being I.A.11485/2022 and I.A.11484/2022.
9. List on 5th September, 2022. These are part heard matters.
PRATHIBA M. SINGH, J.
AUGUST 16, 2022/dk/ms Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed CS (COMM) 692/2021 & 707/2021 Page 7 of 7 By:DEVANSHU JOSHI Signing Date:22.08.2022 16:27:24