Vaporstream Prevails at PTAB in Snapchat Patent Infringement Lawsuit
Heim, Payne & Chorush mounts successful IPR defense on short notice
SANTA MONICA, Calif. – A legal team from Heim, Payne & Chorush LLP successfully defended before the U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board four key patents owned by secure messaging platform Vaporstream in its patent infringement claims against SnapChat.
The Houston-based intellectual property firm, whose lawyers parachuted into the case on short notice, mounted a comprehensive defense of Vaporstream in inter partes review (IPR) proceedings that preserved four patents that are crucial to Vaporstream’s case.
In a series of decisions published between June and August, Heim, Payne & Chorush lawyers successfully defended five of 10 validity challenges brought by SnapChat and parent company Snap Inc. The patents are at the heart of patent litigation against Snap and deal with technology that separates electronic messages from information that identifies the sending and/or receiving parties. According to patent infringement claims filed by Vaporstream, the technology makes Snapchat’s ephemeral and anonymous messaging functions possible.
The winning Heim, Payne & Chorush legal team included Mike Heim, Eric Enger, Blaine Larson and Doug Wilson, who is now with Armond Wilson LLP.
“Our firm was engaged to defend the patents at a relatively late stage in the process – after some of the initial responses had already been filed at the PTAB by Vaporstream, and required us to dramatically change the focus of the initial patent defense,” said firm co-founder Mike Heim. “Patent owners face a very high bar in IPR proceedings, and it only gets higher once a challenge has been instituted.”
Heim, Payne & Chorush has earned numerous favorable outcomes on behalf of patent owners and petitioners in matters before the PTAB. A recent analysis by Patexia Inc. ranked the firm among the most successful in the U.S. based on results for patent owners facing IPR challenges.
Heim, Payne & Chorush LLP represents plaintiffs and defendants in litigation across a broad range of technologies and business sectors. With a wide variety of technical and scientific backgrounds, firm attorneys handle all facets of intellectual property litigation for some of the largest energy and technology firms, as well as individuals and smaller companies. Heim, Payne & Chorush takes pride in its ability to partner with other attorneys and firms to bring the best possible trial team together for the benefit of the client. To learn more about the firm and the work it does, visit www.hpcllp.com.