Judge Puts NTP Patent Lawsuit Against Palm On Hold

A federal judge has granted a stay of proceedings in the patent infringement lawsuit brought against Palm, Inc. by NTP.

The NTP suit, which was filed in November of last year, alleges that Palm is infringing on NTP patents related to mobile devices wirelessly exchanging email.

The reason Palm sought the stay in proceedings is that the patents in question are under review by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO), and, although the Patent Office has not yet declared them invalid, it said in 2005 that it is likely to do so. "The patent owner's arguments are deemed nonpersuasive," the Patent Office wrote. "The next office action is expected to be a final rejection of all current claims."

"We are extremely pleased with the Court's decision to grant a stay. We hope and expect that the PTO's review of NTP's patents will confirm the decision of the examiners to reject them all and so avert the need for further litigation of this matter," said Mary Doyle, Palm's senior vice president and general counsel.

NTP has already forced Research in Motion (RIM) to pay over $600 million to settle a similar lawsuit.