Faegre & Benson Wins Preliminary Injunction in Patent Case for Shock Doctor Inc.

Despite recent Supreme Court precedent that significantly raised the bar for obtaining preliminary injunctions in patent cases, Faegre & Benson LLP successfully represented EZ Gard Industries Inc. (DBA Shock Doctor Inc.) in its recent motion for a preliminary injunction against its competitor XO Athletic Company.

Shock Doctor, a protective athletic gear manufacturer based in Plymouth, Minn., moved for a preliminary injunction to prevent XO Athletic from entering the market with a protective mouthguard that infringes a 1994 Shock Doctor patent covering Shock Doctor's Gel Max™ mouthguard. After receiving notice of Shock Doctor's allegations, XO Athletic redesigned its mouthguard in an attempt to avoid the claims of Shock Doctor's patent. Shock Doctor disputed the effectiveness of XO Athletic's redesign and asserted infringement of both designs.

After consideration of the arguments, the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota saw fit to grant Shock Doctor the extraordinary remedy of a preliminary injunction covering both the original and redesigned XO mouthguard.

In granting Shock Doctor's motion, Chief Judge James M. Rosenbaum's April 23 opinion found "a substantial likelihood that both [XO Athletic's] original design and the redesign of defendant's mouthguard literally infringe the ‘832 patent." The court also noted "a high probability that defendant knew it was marketing an infringing product."

This decision helps secure Shock Doctor's position as a market leader in protective mouthguards and as the exclusive source for its patented Gel Max technology.

Bill Roberts and Kevin Wagner of the Faegre & Benson intellectual property group represented Shock Doctor in this litigation, with assistance from Bill Weimer and John Crimmins, who handle the company's patent portfolio.