Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. GAF Materials LLC
stayed- Docket:
- 2:20-cv-13683-JMV
- Filed:
- 2020-10-01
Patents:6308482
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against GAF Materials. The court granted a stay on 2021-06-15 pending IPR.
Plaintiff
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC
17 cases as plaintiff.
- Cases
- 17
- Active
- 0
- 17 closed
- Filed
- 2020
- Top venue
- N.D. Texas
- 4 cases
Company profile
Kirsch Research and Development, LLC (commonly "Kirsch") is a private, inventor-controlled company headquartered at 1296 Patricia Avenue, Simi Valley, California. It is closely tied to founder/inventor Mark C. Strait, who is the sole named inventor on its asserted patents and is identified in press coverage as president of affiliate Kirsch Building Products, LLC. No reliable public source establishes employee count, revenue, or an exact founding year; patent filings associated with the company date to 1999–2000. It is not publicly traded.
Operations. Kirsch is not a pure shell. Through licensee Kirsch Building Products, LLC, it manufactures and sells synthetic polypropylene roof underlayments under the Sharkskin brand — including Sharkskin Comp, Sharkskin Ultra, Sharkskin Ultra SA (self-adhesive), and Sharkskin Ultra Radiant (metalized radiant barrier). Products carry Florida and Miami-Dade building-code approvals. The asserted portfolio is narrow: U.S. Patent 6,308,482 ("Reinforced Roof Underlayment and Method of Making the Same," filed 2000, expired March 15, 2020) and U.S. Patent 8,765,251 ("Slip Resistant Roof Underlayment," issued 2014), plus U.S. 9,314,994 on a pedestaled underlayment. IPWatchdog described it as an "inventor-controlled litigation vehicle."
Litigation posture. The tracked data shows 17 cases as plaintiff and zero as defendant — a one-way assertion campaign rather than a defense profile. On April 24, 2020 Kirsch filed roughly 16 district court suits plus an ITC Section 337 complaint (Inv. No. 337-TA-1202) against synthetic-underlayment makers and distributors. Filings clustered in the Eastern District of Texas (Texarkana) and Judge Albright's W.D. Texas Waco Division, with others in N.D. Texas, N.D. Ohio, C.D. California, and W.D. Pennsylvania; several were stayed or transferred.
Notable cases. Kirsch v. Owens Corning (N.D. Ohio) settled in November 2021; Kirsch v. BlueLinx (W.D. Tex.) was dismissed with prejudice; Kirsch v. GAF Materials was transferred to D.N.J. and stayed pending IPR. The '482 patent was invalidated in IPR2021-00192 (GAF) and the Federal Circuit affirmed on May 2, 2024. Kirsch withdrew its ITC complaint in December 2020 after an adverse Markman ruling on the '251 patent.
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. Atlas Roofing Corporation
dismissed- Docket:
- 5:20-cv-00055-RWS
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
- Terminated:
- 2021-11-10
Patents:6308482
Kirsch filed this action asserting the '482 patent against Atlas Roofing. The case was dismissed with prejudice by stipulated order entered 2021-11-10.
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. Dörken Systems, Inc.
dismissed- Docket:
- 5:20-cv-00056-RWS
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
Patents:6308482
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against Dörken Systems. Kirsch moved to dismiss, and the case was dismissed without prejudice, with parties bearing their own costs and fees.
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. DuPont de Nemours, Inc. et al.
dismissed- Docket:
- 5:20-cv-00057-RWS
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
- Terminated:
- 2021-11-15
Patents:6308482
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against DuPont entities. The case was consolidated with No. 5:20-cv-00058 and terminated by stipulated dismissal with prejudice on 2021-11-15.
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. FT Synthetics, Inc.
dismissed- Docket:
- 5:20-cv-00058-RWS
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
- Terminated:
- 2021-11-15
Patents:6308482
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against FT Synthetics. The case was consolidated into No. 5:20-cv-00057 and dismissed with prejudice on 2021-11-15.
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. BlueLinx Corporation
dismissed- Docket:
- 6:20-cv-00316-ADA
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
Patents:6308482
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against BlueLinx. The case was dismissed with prejudice as to Kirsch's claims and without prejudice as to counterclaims via Rule 41 stipulation, each side bearing its own fees.
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. IKO Industries, Inc. et al.
stayed- Docket:
- 6:20-cv-00317-ADA
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
Patents:6308482
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against IKO. A claim-construction order issued in 2021, and the case was stayed pending IPR; related IPR2022-00416 was denied institution on 2022-05-20.
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. Tarco Specialty Products, Inc.
stayed- Docket:
- 6:20-cv-00318-ADA
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
Patents:6308482
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against Tarco. The court granted in part a motion to dismiss on 2021-10-04, allowing direct infringement but dismissing induced/willful claims with leave to amend, then stayed the case pending IPR.
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. CertainTeed Corporation
stayed- Docket:
- 3:20-cv-01024-K
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
Patents:6308482
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against CertainTeed. The court granted a stay (Dkt. 55).
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. Continental Materials Inc.
stayed- Docket:
- 3:20-cv-01025-K
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
Patents:6308482
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against Continental Materials. The case had a stay posture and was later refiled in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. GAF Corporation et al.
transferred- Docket:
- 3:20-cv-01028-K
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
Patents:6308482
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against GAF entities. The case was transferred to the District of New Jersey, continuing as No. 2:20-cv-13683-JMV.
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. Intertape Polymer Corp.
transferred- Docket:
- 3:20-cv-01029-K
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
Patents:6308482
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against Intertape Polymer. The case was transferred to the Middle District of Florida, continuing as No. 8:20-cv-01982-T-33JSS.
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. TAMKO Building Products LLC
stayed- Docket:
- 3:20-cv-01030-K
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
Patents:6308482
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against TAMKO. The court granted a stay (Dkt. 45).
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. Owens Corning et al.
stayed- Docket:
- 1:20-cv-00901-DAP
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
Patents:6308482
π Kirsch Research & Development, LLCΔ Owens CorningΔ Owens Corning Roofing & Asphalt, LLCΔ InterWrap Corp.
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against Owens Corning, Owens Corning Roofing & Asphalt, and InterWrap. The court granted a discretionary stay on 2020-08-10.
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. System Components Corporation
stayed- Docket:
- 5:20-cv-00903-DAP
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
Patents:6308482
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against System Components. The court granted a stay (Dkt. 25, 2020-08-10).
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. Epilay, Inc.
stayed- Docket:
- 2:20-cv-03773-RGK-JPR
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
Patents:6308482
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against Epilay. The court granted a stay (Dkt. 26).
Kirsch Research & Development, LLC v. Underlayment Specialties Plus, LLC
unknown- Docket:
- 2:20-cv-02023
- Filed:
- 2020-04-24
Patents:6308482
Kirsch asserted the '482 patent against Underlayment Specialties Plus. The docket lists the cause as 15 U.S.C. § 1126, and the outcome was not confirmed.