By Memorandum Opinion entered by The Honorable Gregory M. Sleet in Genentech, Inc. et al. v. Amgen Inc., Civil Action No. 17-1407-GMS (D.Del. January 22, 2018), the Court denied defendant Amgen Inc.’s motion to transfer two patent infringement actions from the United States District Court for the District of Delaware to the United States District Court for the Central District of Delaware where Amgen has a declaratory judgment action pending. Both Plaintiff and Amgen are incorporated in Delaware with their principal places of business in California. Id. at *1.
In support of its motion, Amgen argued that the Jumara factors weighed heavily in favor of transfer and that transfer was warranted under the first-to-file rule. Id. at *4. In weighing the Jumara factors, the Court found that Amgen’s choice of forum weighed in favor of transfer, but not as strongly as Plaintiff’s choice of forum weighed against transfer. Id. Two factors weighed slightly in favor of transfer: where the claims arose and the convenience of the witnesses. Id. The remaining factors weighed against transfer or were neutral. Id. Thus, because the balance of the Jumara factors did not strongly weigh in favor of transfer, the Court found that Amgen did not carry its burden of demonstrating the transfer was warranted under those factors. Id.
With respect to the first-to-file rule, the Court found that the California action was anticipatory in nature, and there are convenience factors that weigh against transfer in addition to the Jumara factors weighing against transfer. Id. at *13-15. Therefore, the Court refused to apply the first-to-file rule in favor of transfer. Id. at *15.
A copy of the Memorandum Opinion is attached.
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