EcoFactor Urges Justices to Revive $20 Million Google Verdict

Smart thermostat patent owner EcoFactor Inc. petitioned the US Supreme Court to reverse a Federal Circuit ruling and reinstate its $20 million jury verdict against Google LLC, criticizing the appeals court’s read of a rule governing expert witness evidence as too stringent.

The Federal Circuit erred in concluding an EcoFactor expert’s analysis of three prior patent licensing deals with other thermostat makers was unreliable, according to its petition for certiorari, which was docketed Tuesday.

Specifically, the court was skeptical of the expert’s use of the lump-sum deals to determine a per-unit royalty rate applied to every sale of Google ...