“Google Inc. is sparring with a law firm it’s been using since 2008 after discovering lawyers there began representing a patent-licensing business that sued the company’s Android partners last month,” Susan Decker reports for Bloomberg.
“Google claims Pepper Hamilton LLP never provided notice that the law firm was hired by Digitude Innovations LLC, which filed patent-infringement complaints against handset makers, including Android partners HTC Corp. and Samsung Electronics Co.,” Decker reports. “Pepper Hamilton should be disqualified from the case, Google said in a Jan. 27 request to the U.S. International Trade Commission in Washington, where one of the complaints was filed.”
Decker reports, “Google, which has used Pepper Hamilton to help it apply for patents related to its Android mobile operating system, accused the law firm of disloyalty and said confidential information it shared creates conflicts of interest in the Digitude case.”
Read more in the full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Gideon R.” for the heads up.]
Revenge is a dish best served cold, ey Google?!
Behold the clusterf%@K that is Android.
I hate Google as much as the next guy, but based on the above, it’s clear there was a conflict of interest and Pepper Hamilton should have excused themselves from one of the actions or obtained a written waiver from both parties they represented. I guess I hate law firms too, so it’s hard to be sympathetic to either of these a-holes.
I agree with you… but you must accept it is so freaking hilarious and funny what just happened t them. lol
Karma’s a bitch and she’s about to bite Google in the ass.
As long as Karma and Google are both consenting parties, there’s nothing wrong with that…
Spoken like a charter member of Bun Biters International. Welcome, brother!
Just like Schmidt sat on the board of Apple during iPhone development and did not make a competing product with his inside information…. Ohh wait.
Never mind. Bad example.
1
+100500
Apple gave Google early access to design, UI, APIs for iPhone.
Apple-Google story is almost exact replica of Apple-MS story.
I agree that the attorneys were in a conflict of interest.
But it’s such delicious irony that Google would be appalled that someone they thought was close to them would take their secrets and try to turn a buck with them.
+1
Nailed it.
Google offended by disloyalty. ROFLAO!
+∞
That said, we are talking about lawyers. Does this come as a surprise?
All lawyers have more professional ethics than anyone working at Google with the possible exception of the janitor.
The janitor works for a contract firm like Acme or Bay janitorial Services.
lawyers don’t think like people. Their logic revolves around semantics…which is flawed logic. I dated a lawyer..so I know 😉 they will argue that the sky is not blue while standing under a blue sky…and eventually, you will believe it!
I don’t recall reading about you dating lawyers in the New Testament…
Android licencees are most electronic manufacturing companies in the world. If they were not mentioned in past lawsuits as parties involved in Google’s case, the law firm may not need to justify other client’s lawsuits.
A lawyer goes where the money flows.
“Google, which has used Pepper Hamilton to help it apply for patents related to its Android mobile operating system, accused the law firm of disloyalty and said confidential information it shared creates conflicts of interest in the Digitude case.”
Precious irony…
Pepper Hamilton probably needed more work since there’s not much Google can patents for Android.
classic!
Wonder if Apple can hire that law firm? 🙂
Oh yea, I think Apple has made the same statement to Google. Never spit into the wind.
Pot calling the kettle black much ?
Google, using Apple IP to fight against it, shouldn’t complain about their lawyers using their subject matter knowledge to litigate against “partners” who use Android for free (obviously not causing Google any direct financial damage should they lose the case).
The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers…and then all the moles.
If we killed all of the lawyers, there would be no democrat politicians… oh..wait..
Guess what most Republican politicians are, nitwit.
Nice. Shakespeare. Henry the 8th, act 2, scene 1. My father (the Dr.) had that on his favorite coffee mug.
Google Strategy:
Hire all the big law firms to do a little bit of work for you (12 Android patents over 4 years) and then cry foul if they represent a client who brings a suit against your customers – thus setting it up so none of those firms can participate in any action against you or your customers.
No wonder this law firm wants to fire Google as a client. Google looks like a pretty rotton client to have.
I didn’t think a rotten lawyer would care about having like minded clients.
You seem to miss my point.
Google tries to use a little bit of work (Probably a small part of 1 out of 500 lawyers time) to prevent a large office from doing a lot of work. If they could tie the hands of most/all of the large firms using this strategy, they could stop or delay patent infringement litigation against themselves and their “Android Partners”.
Was just listening to the audiobook “A princess of Mars” by Edgar Rice Burroughs. John Carter is explaining some of the customs of the Tharks, the green warriors.
“Their people are happy. They have no lawyers”