Thys Co. v. Anglo California National Bank

These are companion suits for damages for alleged patent infringement. They relate to contrivances in the field of hop harvesting. No. 13,885 involves patent No. 2,226,009, issued December 24, 1940, for a separator belt composed of woven netting materials. No. 13,947 involves patent No. 2,448,063, issued August 31, 1948, describing wire picking fingers the adjacent legs of which have complementary bends serving to interconnect the fingers. The claims in suit are set out in the opinions of the district court reported in 111 F.Supp. 665 and 114 F.Supp. 403 . The court found both patents invalid for want of invention.

The brief of appellants in each case is notable chiefly for an almost complete disregard of our rules. Following are examples of this shortcoming: Rule 18, subdivision 2(c), requires a concise abstract or statement of the case, presenting succinctly the questions involved and the manner in which they are raised. Throughout the whole of a 56-page statement of the case in No. 13,885 this requirement is ignored. The facts are commingled with arguments in such manner as to render the one indistinguishable from the other. Any clear understanding of the facts and of the…