FRANK'S CASING CREW & RENTAL TOOLS, INC., C&H PIPE SERVICES, INC., DAMCO SERVICES, INC., HOBCO, INC., HUNTING TUBULAR THREADING, INC., REBEL RENTALS, INC., SLADCO, INC., and TONG RENTALS & SUPPLY CO., INC., and TONG RENTALS, INC. , Plaintiffs-Cross Appellants, and TUBULAR MAKEUP TECHNOLOGY, INC., Plaintiff-Cross Appellant, and CONNECTION TECHNOLOGY, LTD. and TONG SPECIALTY, INC., Plaintiffs-Cross Appellants, and GULFSTREAM RENTAL TOOLS, INC. and OFFSHORE ENERGY SERVICES, INC., Plaintiffs-Cross Appellants, and BENTON CASING SERVICE, INC., Plaintiff, and HYDRIL COMPANY, Plaintiff, and TUBULAR TECHNOLOGY, INC., Plaintiff, and SPINDLETOP TUBULAR SERVICES, INC., Plaintiff-Appellee, and VAM PTS COMPANY, Plaintiff-Appellee, and BILCO TOOLS, INC. and CHEYENNE SERVICES, INC., Plaintiffs, and LOOMIS INTERNATIONAL, INC., Plaintiff, v. PMR TECHNOLOGIES, LTD. and PMR SERVICES, INC., Defendants-Appellants, v. DARRELL L. VINCENT, LARRY W. VINCENT, TUBULAR MAKEUP SPECIALIST, INC., TMS EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURING & SALES, INC., CONNECTION TECHNOLOGY, and JOHN E. SHAUNFIELD, Defendants., 292 F.3d 1363

Summary

The subject matter of the patent concerned the technique of screwing threaded pipes together, particularly useful in the field of oil and gas drilling. The court affirmed portions of the district's court's holding because: (1) the patent assignees had waived their personal jurisdiction defense by filing claims against new defendants in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana; (2) the district court's finding that a true inventor of at least one of the '063 patent claims was not named on the patent was not erroneous; (3) the district court did not commit reversible error in concluding that the '063 patent was unenforceable because of inequitable conduct during its prosecution; and (4) the district court did not abuse its discretion in denying attorney fees.