CHICAGO (LN) — U.S. District Judge Matthew F. Kennelly on Monday granted Google LLC’s motion to transfer a patent infringement suit filed by Mark McLellan to the Northern District of California, finding the West Coast forum offered clearer access to witnesses and physical evidence.
McLellan sued Google in the Northern District of Illinois, alleging the company’s search engine infringed his patent on an algorithm that ranks websites based on actions performed by their promoters.
Kennelly ruled that McLellan’s choice of forum was entitled to weak deference because the plaintiff resides in Delaware and has no meaningful ties to Illinois.
The judge found that the convenience factors heavily favored transfer. Google identified six lead employees with relevant knowledge, five of whom are based in California, along with three former Yahoo! employees who could testify on validity issues.
Kennelly rejected McLellan’s argument that video testimony could substitute for live appearances, noting that federal rules permit remote testimony only for good cause in compelling circumstances. He cited advisory committee notes to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 43, which emphasize the value of face-to-face demeanor assessment and the importance of presenting live testimony in court.
The court also noted that physical evidence, including servers and a Yahoo! prior-art device, is located in California. McLellan did not dispute the location of these items or argue that digitized documents rendered them unnecessary.
Kennelly gave little weight to Google’s argument that California courts resolve patent cases faster, calling the time-to-trial statistics a wash. However, he concluded that the lack of any connection between the case and Illinois tipped the balance toward transfer.
The judge left Google’s pending motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim for the transferee court to decide.