Simonian v. Mead Westvaco Corp., No. 10 C 1217 Slip. Op. (N.D. Ill. Sep. 1, 2011) (Castillo, J.). 

Judge Castillo granted defendant Mead Westvaco’s motion to dismiss plaintiff Simonian’s false patent marking suit claiming that Mead Westvaco marked envelopes with expired patents. Simonian’s general allegation of intent did not meet the Fed. R. Civ. P. 9 (b) heightened pleading standards. In fact, they mirrored the allegations held insufficient in BP Lubricant. And Simonian did not:

• Identify specific Mead Westvaco individuals with knowledge of the alleged false marking;
• Allege that Mead Westvaco sued a third party asserting the patents after they expired; or
• Allege that Mead Westvaco made multiple revisions to the packaging on the markings after the patents expired.