Answer to Complaint for Declaratory Judgment of Patent Non-infringement and Invalidity
(with Counterclaim)

Summary

Use this Answer to Complaint for Declaratory Judgment of Patent Non-infringement and Invalidity (with Counterclaim) template as a starting point to draft an answer to a declaratory judgment complaint. A counterclaim for patent infringement and drafting notes with practical guidance are included. Generally, unless the time has been extended, you must serve your answer within 21 days of service of the complaint. Check local rules and local patent rules for any special requirements for answers or counterclaims. This template admits the existence of declaratory judgment jurisdiction. If you wish to contest declaratory judgment jurisdiction on the ground that there is no case or controversy as to infringement, use the following template as a starting point: Answer to Complaint for Declaratory Judgment of Patent Non-infringement and Invalidity (with Affirmative Defenses). For a general discussion of how to answer a complaint in federal court, see Answering the Complaint (Federal). For information on asserting counterclaims and crossclaims, see Counterclaims: Asserting and Responding to Counterclaims (Federal). For a discussion of counterclaims by a patent owner, see Horwitz on Patent Litigation § 3.05[3].