Opinion ID: 211218
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Adverse-Inference Jury Instruction

Text: 43 Finally, Hunter's Specialties asserts that under Knorr-Bremse, 383 F.3d at 1337, the district court erred in instructing the jury that it could draw an adverse-inference from an opinion withheld due to the assertion of the attorney-client privilege. Although Hunter's Specialties recognizes that the only defendant to assert the attorney-client privilege was Wayne Carlton, it argues that the adverse-inference jury instruction prejudiced all defendants because the infringement claim involved all defendants and was tried to one jury. Primos responds that the court vacated the judgment against Wayne Carlton, the only individual who asserted the attorney-client privilege and therefore the only person who was potentially prejudiced by the jury instruction. Primos points out that Hunter's Specialties waived the attorney-client privilege and thus was not affected by the adverse jury instruction. In addition, Primos contends that Hunter's Specialties did not present any evidence on how it was prejudiced by the jury's instruction. 44 We agree with Primos that the jury instruction did not prejudice Hunter's Specialties. A party seeking to alter a judgment based on erroneous jury instructions must establish that those instructions were legally erroneous, and that the errors had prejudicial effect. Advanced Display Sys., Inc. v. Kent State Univ., 212 F.3d 1272, 1281 (Fed.Cir.2000). Legal error in an erroneous jury instruction is prejudicial when it is inconsistent with substantial justice. Fed.R.Civ.P. 61. The jury's instruction for inducement of infringement against individual defendants David Forbes and Wayne Carlton provided that the assertion of the attorney-client privilege with respect to a non-infringement opinion may support an inference that the withheld advice of counsel was adverse to that party. That jury instruction thus permitted an adverse inference to be drawn against the party that asserted the attorney-client privilege. The only individual who asserted the attorney-client privilege, however, was Wayne Carlton, and the court vacated the judgment of inducement of infringement against him. The only individual therefore potentially prejudiced by the adverse-inference instruction was Wayne Carlton, not Hunter's Specialties. In addition, in the jury's instruction as to willful infringement against individual defendant Hunter's Specialties, the express adverse inference language was absent. Rather, the instruction stated that the jury must consider the totality of the circumstances and may rely on a number of factors to support a finding of willfulness. There was therefore no adverse-inference instruction as to willfulness against Hunter's Specialties. Thus, we conclude that the jury's instruction was not legally erroneous and did not result in prejudicial error against either individual defendants Hunter's Specialties or David Forbes. 45 We have considered Hunter's Specialties other arguments and find them to be unpersuasive.