Court / venue

Texas Western District Court

289 tracked cases.

Court overview

The United States District Court for the Western District of Texas (W.D. Tex.) is a federal court operating within the Fifth Circuit, though appeals for patent claims are directed to the Federal Circuit. Headquartered in San Antonio, the district maintains divisions in Austin, Del Rio, El Paso, Midland, Pecos, and Waco. Historically, the Western District of Texas, particularly its Waco Division, became one of the nation's busiest patent litigation venues, notably from 2018 through 2021, when it accounted for a significant percentage of national patent filings. After a decline in 2024 following procedural changes, the court showed signs of recovery in 2025, becoming the second most popular venue for patent filings nationwide and for Non-Practicing Entity (NPE) cases during the first half of 2025. The court currently tracks 275 active patent cases.

The W.D. Tex. gained a reputation as a "rocket docket," primarily due to the case management practices of Judge Alan Albright, who was known for setting aggressive schedules and moving cases quickly to trial. His approach fostered a plaintiff-friendly environment, characterized by a reluctance to grant early dispositive motions (including § 101 challenges prior to claim construction) and motions to stay pending Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) proceedings. The court's median time-to-trial was approximately two years in 2022 (24.2 months for jury trials, 23.9 months for bench trials). However, Judge Albright's historical tendency to deny motions to transfer venue led to a high number of mandamus petitions to the Federal Circuit, though transfer grants from the Waco Division increased in 2022 after Federal Circuit guidance.

While the Western District of Texas does not have overarching "local patent rules" like some other districts, individual judges have issued comprehensive standing orders governing patent cases. A significant procedural shift occurred in July 2022 when Chief Judge Orlando Garcia issued an order, since maintained by Chief Judge Alia Moses, mandating random assignment of patent cases filed in the Waco Division among the district's judges. This change aimed to prevent judge-shopping, which had previously allowed plaintiffs to reliably have their cases heard by Judge Albright. These standing orders, such as Judge Albright's Order Governing Proceedings (OGP) 4.3 (as of April 2023) and Judge David Counts' Standing Order Governing Patent Proceedings, detail specific timelines for claim construction (e.g., Markman hearing initially scheduled 23 weeks after the Case Management Conference), discovery limits, and procedures for addressing discovery disputes and claim narrowing.

Notable cases among those tracked include a series of active suits filed by Aml Ip LLC against various defendants like AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc., Dillard's, Inc., and Expedia, Inc., as well as more recent filings such as Egla Corp v. Mood Media LLC et al., Authentixx LLC v. Udemy Inc, and Athena Security Inc v. Google LLC. A noteworthy public ruling in late 2025 involved Judge David Counts dismissing a patent infringement suit (Authwallet, LLC v. CIBC Bank USA) on standing grounds due to a defective patent assignment chain of title, a decision currently on appeal. This highlights the court's scrutiny of foundational legal requirements in patent litigation.

Several judges in the Western District of Texas actively handle patent litigation. Judge Alan Albright, a former patent litigator, was the primary force behind the district's surge in patent filings from 2018 until the 2022 random assignment order, and he is expected to move to the Austin Division. Judge David Counts, listed with 5 tracked cases, became a prominent patent judge after adopting standing orders similar to Judge Albright's. As the sole district judge in the Midland-Odessa Division, he has since seen a significant increase in patent filings, rising to become the nation's second-most active patent judge by the first quarter of 2025. Other judges in the district who hear patent cases include Kathleen Cardone, Xavier Rodriguez, Robert Pitman, Jason Pulliam, Ernest Gonzalez, Senior Judge David Alan Ezra, and Magistrate Judges Miguel A. Torres and Derek Gilliland. Magistrate Judge Derek Gilliland also maintains a Standing Order Governing Proceedings for patent cases.

Judges (1)

Filing activity

2020: 3 cases'202021: 25 cases'212022: 16 cases'222023: 26 cases'232024: 46 cases46'242025: 41 cases'252026: 22 cases'26
Patent cases filed per year in Texas Western District Court.

Cases (289)