<story><title>Patent Lawyer Turned Judge Advertises for Patent Trolls to Come to His Court</title><url>https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20200927/01044945391/former-patent-litigator-becomes-federal-judge-begins-advertising-patent-trolls-to-come-to-his-court-they-have-droves.shtml</url></story><parent_chain></parent_chain><comment><author>spuddie</author><text>I guess I will remove my lurker hat as I am familiar with this situation. The article leaves out a lot of context. 
The Western District of Texas includes Waco, Austin, and other areas. It&amp;#x27;s worth understanding the history of patent cases in this district to understand what partially motivated Albright to &amp;quot;advertise&amp;quot; his court to patent litigants.&lt;p&gt;Prior to Albright&amp;#x27;s appointment, none of the judges in the Western District wanted patent cases. They openly and repeatedly said so. Patent cases were unreasonably slow in the district, and the judges essentially said &amp;quot;we don&amp;#x27;t like or want these types of cases.&amp;quot;&lt;p&gt;As a former patent litigator, Albright wanted to make clear that the Western District now has a judge who welcomes those cases, as opposed to shunning them. It&amp;#x27;s also his area of expertise, and attorneys frequently complain that most judges are ill-equipped to conduct patent cases due to the specialization of that area the law.&lt;p&gt;The notion that Albright is a &amp;quot;patent troll&amp;quot; friend is incorrect. The clients he has represented are all there in public court filings. He has represented big tech (including Facebook). He has represented pharma companies. He has represented small companies. He has been on both the plaintiff and defendant side. I believe that most attorneys do not consider him to be pro &amp;quot;patent troll.&amp;quot;&lt;p&gt;Apple is the primary litigant that wants to transfer out of Texas courts. The judge is only part of the reason. They also really want California juries.</text></comment>
<story><title>Patent Lawyer Turned Judge Advertises for Patent Trolls to Come to His Court</title><url>https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20200927/01044945391/former-patent-litigator-becomes-federal-judge-begins-advertising-patent-trolls-to-come-to-his-court-they-have-droves.shtml</url></story><parent_chain></parent_chain><comment><author>dmurray</author><text>What&amp;#x27;s in it for him?&lt;p&gt;It seems obvious that this guy is corrupt, but exactly how? Presumably the federal government doesnt pay per case. Does he have an interest in a local law firm? Does he get kickbacks in cash? Or is he planning on returning to practicing law in a few years through the revolving door and this will raise his profile?&lt;p&gt;I guess we shouldn&amp;#x27;t rule out the possibility that he just feels passionately about patent law and shaping the American legal landscape to his own opinions. The late Justice Ginsberg was widely praised for the same. But somehow it&amp;#x27;s harder to believe in this field.</text></comment>