Assignment history

Inventors

• Michael Rothschild: Employer at the time of filing is not explicitly stated in the patent document. The original assignee was Corigin Ltd.

Original assignee

The original assignee named on the issued patent is Corigin Ltd.
The patent abstract and description indicate that the invention relates to load balancing and data sharing for computer-executable processes like sort applications, statistical analysis, report writing, and database queries. It is unclear from the patent text alone whether Corigin Ltd. shipped a product embodying these claims.
Corigin Ltd. subsequently assigned the patent to Michael Rothschild in 2007. Its current status (operating, acquired, dissolved, in bankruptcy) is not readily determinable from the patent document itself.

Assignment timeline

• 2003-04-03 (executed) / recorded 2003-04-21 — Reel 013985/0119

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: Rothschild, Michael
  • Assignee: Corigin Ltd, ISRAEL
  • Correspondent: BLANKMAN, MARC, 301 N. Charles St. Baltimore, MD 21201.
  • Context: Transfer from inventor to initial assignee.

• 2007-06-21 (executed) / recorded 2007-07-09 — Reel 019527/0110

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: Corigin Ltd.
  • Assignee: Rothschild, Michael, ISRAEL
  • Correspondent: BLANKMAN, MARC, 301 N. Charles St. Baltimore, MD 21201. (Correspondent recurs).
  • Context: Transfer from original assignee back to inventor.

• 2008-05-13 (executed) / recorded 2008-06-10 — Reel 021064/0887

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: Rothschild, Michael
  • Assignee: Otic Investments Limited Liability Company, DELAWA
  • Correspondent: STEPHEN J. MCGLYNN, 2033 Gateway Place, Suite 550 San Jose, CA 95110.
  • Context: Transfer from inventor to a new entity.

• 2015-08-12 (executed) / recorded 2015-09-17 — Reel 036595/0766

  • Conveyance: Merger
  • Assignor: Otic Investments Limited Liability Company
  • Assignee: Cufer Asset Ltd. L.L.C., DELAWARE
  • Correspondent: RICHARD J. MCKAY, 2033 Gateway Place, Suite 550 San Jose, CA 95110. (Correspondent firm recurs).
  • Context: Acquisition of assignee via merger.

• 2024-09-26 (executed) / recorded 2024-09-26 — Reel 068714/0435

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: Cufer Asset Ltd. L.L.C.
  • Assignee: Intellectual Ventures I LLC, DELAWARE
  • Correspondent: JEFFREY B. MCMAHAN, 10480 Little Patuxent Pkwy, Suite 300, Columbia, MD 21044.
  • Context: Transfer to a known patent assertion entity.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 7257582
    2003 : Assigned to Corigin Ltd
    2007 : Assigned to Michael Rothschild
    2008 : Assigned to Otic Investments LLC
    2015 : Merged to Cufer Asset Ltd LLC
    2024 : Assigned to Intellectual Ventures I LLC

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Present.

   • 2008-05-13 (executed) / recorded 2008-06-10 — Reel 021064/0887: Assigned to "Otic Investments Limited Liability Company, DELAWA". The name, a Delaware LLC, and the subsequent merger into another LLC suggest a shell entity.
   • 2015-08-12 (executed) / recorded 2015-09-17 — Reel 036595/0766: Merged into "Cufer Asset Ltd. L.L.C., DELAWARE". This entity also has the characteristics of a shell.
   • 2024-09-26 (executed) / recorded 2024-09-26 — Reel 068714/0435: Assigned to "Intellectual Ventures I LLC, DELAWARE". Intellectual Ventures is a well-known patent assertion entity, often operating through shell-like LLCs.

2. Known asserter in the chain — Present.

   • 2024-09-26 (executed) / recorded 2024-09-26 — Reel 068714/0435: The current assignee is "Intellectual Ventures I LLC", which is widely recognized as a patent assertion entity.

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Present.

   • Marc Blankman (301 N. Charles St. Baltimore, MD 21201) appears as correspondent for the assignment to Corigin Ltd. (Reel 013985/0119) and the assignment back to Michael Rothschild (Reel 019527/0110).
   • The firm associated with Stephen J. McGlynn (2033 Gateway Place, Suite 550 San Jose, CA 95110) for the assignment to Otic Investments LLC (Reel 021064/0887) appears to be the same firm as Richard J. McKay (same address) for the merger to Cufer Asset Ltd. L.L.C. (Reel 036595/0766), indicating a recurring firm.

4. Cascading transfers — Not present. The transfers occur over several years (2003, 2007, 2008, 2015, 2024), not within a tight 24-month window.

5. Pre-litigation transfer — Present.

   • The assignment to Intellectual Ventures I LLC was executed and recorded on 2024-09-26 (Reel 068714/0435).
   • The first district court case, Intellectual Ventures I LLC et al. v. American Airlines Inc. (4:24-cv-00980), was filed on November 2, 2024. This is approximately one month after the assignment, falling well within the 6-month window for a pre-litigation transfer. Another case, Intellectual Ventures I LLC et al. v. Southwest Airlines Co. (7:24-cv-00277) was also filed on November 2, 2024.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. There is no indication in the provided information of any assignor filing for bankruptcy.

7. Privateering — Unclear. While Intellectual Ventures is a known asserter, the context of Corigin Ltd's primary business and its relationship with Intellectual Ventures is not explicitly detailed in the provided data.

8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The chain ends with Intellectual Ventures I LLC, which is an asserting entity, not a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence. This verdict is driven by multiple strong signals. The patent was transferred to "Otic Investments Limited Liability Company" and then "Cufer Asset Ltd. L.L.C.", both Delaware LLCs with names suggestive of shell entities (Reels 021064/0887, 036595/0766). The ultimate assignment to "Intellectual Ventures I LLC" (Reel 068714/0435) confirms a known patent assertion entity in the chain. Furthermore, the transfer to Intellectual Ventures occurred on 2024-09-26, just over a month before initial infringement lawsuits were filed in November 2024, indicating a clear pre-litigation transfer to enable assertion. The recurrence of correspondent firms also points to a specialized practice in patent transfers.

USPTO Assignment Center search page for verification: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/