§ 75-140 – Title.
75-140. Title. This Article shall be known and may be cited as the "Abusive Patent Assertions Act." (2014-110, s. 2.1.)
§ 75-141 – Purpose.
75-141. Purpose. (a) The General Assembly finds the following: (1) North Carolina is home to a growing high-technology, knowledge-based economy. With its top-tier research universities and active technology sector, North Carolina is poised to continue its growth. To continue growing, North Carolina must attract new, small, and mid-sized technology companies. Doing so will help provide […]
§ 75-142 – Definitions.
75-142. Definitions. The following definitions apply in this Article: (1) Affiliate. – A business establishment, business, or other legal entity that wholly or substantially owns, is wholly or substantially owned by, or is under common ownership with another entity. (2) Demand. – A letter, e-mail, or other communication asserting or claiming that a target has […]
§ 75-143 – Abusive patent assertions.
75-143. Abusive patent assertions. (a) It is unlawful for a person to make a bad-faith assertion of patent infringement. A court may consider the following factors as evidence that a person has made a bad-faith assertion of patent infringement: (1) The demand does not contain all of the following information: a. The patent application number […]
§ 75-144 – Bond.
75-144. Bond. (a) Upon motion by a target and a finding by the court that a target has established a reasonable likelihood that a person has made a bad-faith assertion of patent infringement in violation of this Chapter, the court shall require the person to post a bond in an amount equal to a good-faith […]
§ 75-145 – Enforcement; remedies; damages.
75-145. Enforcement; remedies; damages. (a) The Attorney General shall have the same authority under this Article to make rules, conduct civil investigations, bring civil actions, and enter into assurances of discontinuance as provided under this Chapter. In an action brought by the Attorney General pursuant to this section, the court may award or impose any […]