Air Measurement Techs., Inc. v. Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld

This is a legal malpractice case between non-diverse parties based on alleged errors by counsel in patent prosecution and patent litigation. The case was filed in state court and then removed to federal court. Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, L.L.P. and Branscomb, P.C. (collectively “Akin Gump”) appeal the interlocutory decision of the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas denying their motion to remand Air Measurement Technologies, Inc., North-South Corporation, and Louis Herbert Stumberg’s (collectively “AMT’s”) lawsuit, which motion asserted want of subject matter jurisdiction under federal patent law, 28 U.S.C. § 1338. Air Measurement Techs., Inc. v. Akin Gump, No. SA-03-CA-0541 (W.D. Tex. Sept. 29, 2006). Because we conclude that the patent infringement question is a necessary element of AMT’s malpractice claim and raises a substantial, contested question of patent law that Congress intended for resolution in federal court, we affirm.

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