TrollingEffects.org To Help Potential Victims of Patent Trolls

First time accepted submitter kdataman writes "The EFF has helped launch a new site to help the potential victims of patent trolling. It is called TrollingEffects.org and is designed to parallel the way ChillingEffects.org helps those getting DMCA letters. The idea is to educate the targets and help them work together for a more cost-effective defense."

Why so long?

[DavidClarkeHR]

Having documents that help either side present an appropriate (and balanced) defense in court should be part of the process. I'm not advocating for bigger government directly, but I think that simplifying the system and making it more accessible to people would promote democracy in a way that capitalism no longer does ... and that sort of reform is going to be painful, expensive and require a lot of advocacy in the interim.

Thanks to the EFF doing their part in promoting real freedom.

Re:Why so long?

[ShanghaiBill]

Having documents that help either side present an appropriate (and balanced) defense in court should be part of the process.

By the time you go to court it is too late. If you are naive and inexperienced, you will have already spent thousands or tens of thousands on attorney fees before the courts get involved.

I have received about a dozen letters from patent trolls over the years, primarily from Acacia Research [wikipedia.org], but also a few others. In every case, I read the letter carefully, considered the best course of action, and then decided to ignore it. I then put each letter in a filing cabinet, and never responded to any of them. In some cases I received a followup letter, with I also ignored.

Here are some tips:
1. You are under no obligation to respond to a letter. You are only required to respond to a legal summons that is properly served.
2. Patent trolls tend to shotgun out threatening letters, so if you receive one, it doesn't mean they actually think you are infringing. Most likely they are just fishing for suckers.
3. Your lawyer is NOT on your side. His goal is to milk you for as much as he can get. Think carefully about even getting a lawyer invovled. If you do, listen to the advice, but make your own decisions.
4. If you are actually sued, get the word out and try to locate other defendants. You can team up to find prior art, shared information, share defense strategies, and maybe even convince the court to combine the lawsuits, which can save you money.