WESTBROOK, Maine—Credit unions in this state have beaten back a “patent troll” attempt that the Maine CU League has labeled a bid at a “shakedown.”
In 2014, nearly every CU in the state received a demand letter from Automated Transactions, LLC, which alleged that the use of and operation of ATMs infringed on certain patents on remote terminal technology, according to the league.
“As part of this shakedown, ATL threatened to sue the credit unions unless they paid a fee for a license in the technology,” said the league. “These patents were of dubious validity, so ATL deliberately set the fee at less than what it assumed would be the costs to defend the threatened lawsuit – this cost is referred to as ‘nuisance value’ in the legal profession. What ATL did NOT count on was that Maine's Credit Unions, with the help of your league, would band together and use their combined strength to mount a unified defense against ATL.”
Saying it took a “calculated risk” that the patent issued and that long-term litigation was a potential risk to both sides, Maine’s credit unions joined together in a defense that was led by Adrian Kendall of the league’s counsel, Norman, Hanson & DeTroy, and litigated by patent attorney Robert Stier, Jr. of Pierce Atwood.
The result, according to the league, is at ATL has released all credit unions as defendants.
"This has been an issue that has caused significant concerns to Maine credit unions over the past year and, while the legislation dealt with future frivolous claims, the outcome of this litigation was still out there,” said MCUL CEO John Murphy. “It is gratifying to see it ruled in our favor, and we appreciate the hard work of all involved."
The Maine legislature has passed patent troll legislation, but it left pending claims that as that by ATL in limbo.