Canadian Lawyer

w w w . C A N A D I A N L a w y e r m a g . c o m M A R C H 2 0 1 6 43 hile oil prices and profits have plunged to new lows in Western Canada, litigation is heating up in the legal departments of some oil service com- panies as they ramp up protection of their highly valuable pat- ents. After years of legal wrangling, some are paying big dividends. One general counsel in particular is waging a full-on battle against competi- tors in an effort to protect future profits. In early January, Tracey Beaudoin, gen- eral counsel with fracking technology company Packers Plus Energy Services Inc., was celebrating when she and her legal team from Bereskin & Parr LLP learned they had scored a major win. On Dec. 4, 2015, the Federal Court of Canada ruled in favour of Packers Plus in a patent infringement lawsuit filed against competitor Canuck Com- pletions Ltd. in July 2013. It was for infringement of a Packers Plus Cana- dian patent entitled "Method and Appa- ratus for Wellbore Fluid Treatment," commonly known in the industry as open-hole, multi-stage ball drop frac- turing system, used in horizontal drill- ing and well completion systems. The court awarded Packers Plus $7.7 million in damages and $495,000 in costs, and dismissed Canuck Comple- tions' counterclaim. The court enjoined Canuck Completions from further infringing the patent or inducing others to do so. Beaudoin says there is more like it still to come — all part of a multi-year patent litigation strategy Packers Plus is pursuing under her leadership. "I think the current price of oil will also drive litigation in this area," says Beaudoin. "When you live in Calgary, you cer- tainly feel that. You have to take a very calculated risk and have to be confident about your position." Since early 2000, Packers Plus had been innovating in the downhole com- pletions market. They came out with what was considered to be a huge break- through in the market. "It was the new- est, latest, and greatest technology over what had been done for years prior," says Beaudoin. She had joined the com- pany in 2009 just as use of and interest in the technology was taking off. Even in what was a down market then, the company itself wasn't affected by what was happening elsewhere in the sector. "The technology was snowballing and so, of course, with that and any new invention comes people who want to L E G A L R E P O RT \ M I N I N G & E N E R G Y L AW W MATTHEW BILLINGTON Patent wars in the oil patch Profi ts are down, but patent litigation is booming as tech companies serving the energy sector batten down the hatches. By Jennifer Brown

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