Opinion
No. C 05-4063 CW
03-01-2013
TESSERA, INC., Plaintiff, v. ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES, INC.; SPANSION, LLC; SPANSION, INC; SPANSION TECHNOLOGY, INC.; ADVANCED SEMICONDUCTOR ENGINEERING, INC.; ASE (U.S.), INC.; CHIPMOS TECHNOLOGIES, INC.; CHIPMOS U.S.A., INC.; SILICONWARE PRECISION INDUSTRIES CO., LTD.; SILICONWARE USA, INC.; STMICROELECTRONICS N.V.; STMICROELECTRONICS, INC.; STATS CHIPPAC, INC.; STATS CHIPPAC (BVI), LTD.; and STATS CHIPPAC, LTD., Defendants. AND ALL RELATED COUNTERCLAIMS
ORDER ADOPTING SPECIAL MASTER'S REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION
REGARDING ST DEFENDANTS' MOTION TO SEVER (Docket No. 1164) AND
GRANTING ST DEFENDANTS' MOTION
TO ADOPT THE REPORT RECOMMENDATION
(Docket No. 1167)
Defendants STMicroelectronics N.V. and STMicroelectronics, Inc. (ST Defendants) filed a motion before the Special Master seeking to sever the claims that Plaintiff Tessera, Inc. has asserted against them from those made against the other Defendants in this action. The Special Master recommends to the Court that: (1) ST Defendants' motion be denied without prejudice; (2) the Special Master remain available to the parties for discussion on the subject of trial management and possible severance; (3) Tessera be compelled to submit a plan by June 30, 2013 on how this case and the related cases can be fairly tried; and (4) Defendants be allowed to move for some kind of severance or trial management by August 31, 2013.
ST Defendants have filed a motion, requesting that the Court adopt the Special Master's recommendations without alteration. Tessera opposes ST Defendants' motion and asks that its trial plan be due by July 30, 2013, after the July 15, 2013 due date for the parties' rebuttal expert reports. Tessera does not otherwise object to the Special Master's recommendations.
Having considered the papers filed by the parties, the Court finds that the Special Master's recommended deadline represents a fair and appropriate way to balance the concerns expressed by the parties. Therefore, the Court GRANTS ST Defendants' motion to adopt the Special Master's report and recommendations (Docket No. 1167) and ADOPTS the Special Master's recommendations (Docket No. 1164) without alteration, except minor adjustments to the deadlines to ensure that they do not occur on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday. The Court ORDERS that:
(1) ST Defendants' motion for severance, made before the Special Master, is denied without prejudice;
(2) the Special Master shall remain available to the parties for discussion on the subject of trial management and possible severance;
(3) Tessera shall submit a plan by Monday, July 1, 2013 on how this case and the related cases can be fairly tried; and
(4) Defendants may file a motion for severance and an alternate trial plan by Tuesday, September 3, 2013.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
______________
CLAUDIA WILKEN
United States District Judge