WASHINGTON -- The Rambus Inc. SDRAM patent infringement trial against Infineon Technologies AG has been delayed once again for six more days before opening arguments by both sides in a U.S. District Court in Richmond, Va.
The oft-postponed trial had last been scheduled to start April 17. Jury selection is now scheduled to take place on Friday, April 20, and opening arguments by attorneys is slated for 1:30 p.m. Monday, April 23. Rambus is then scheduled to start presenting its evidence later that day.
In the meantime, Infineon attorneys will be taking depositions of Rambus officials and their attorneys regarding discussions that took place inside Rambus during the 1992 to 1996 timeframe. Those discussions dealt with whether Rambus should disclose to the industry JEDEC standards body the fact that the firm had pending SDRAM patent applications.
The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond upheld Judge Robert Payne's exemption of client-attorney priviledge to allow the depositions, due to alleged Rambus fraud in failing to disclose its synchronous DRAM patent claims to JEDEC.
Judge Payne on Tuesday, however, denied two separate long-standing confidential petitions by Infineon to compel depositions of unidentified witnesses. The motions were sealed and Judge Payne did not elaboate in his order denying the Infineon petitions.
