Damages Calculation & Economic Analysis Flashcards

In patent infringement damages, a 'reasonable royalty' is most commonly calculated using the framework established in:

Answer: Georgia-Pacific Corp. v. U.S. Plywood Corp.

Georgia-Pacific sets out 15 factors for determining a reasonable royalty rate through a hypothetical negotiation between willing parties.

When calculating economic damages, the difference between 'general damages' and 'special damages' (consequential damages) is that general damages:

Answer: Flow naturally from the wrong and need not be specifically pleaded

General damages naturally and necessarily flow from the breach, while special damages require specific pleading because they arise from particular circumstances of the plaintiff.

The 'event study' methodology in securities damages analysis isolates the price impact of alleged fraud by:

Answer: Separating stock price movements attributable to the fraud from market and industry-wide movements

An event study uses regression analysis to strip out market and industry effects, leaving only the stock price change attributable to the company-specific event.

In commercial litigation, 'expectation damages' aim to put the non-breaching party in the position they would have been in if:

Answer: The contract had been fully performed

Expectation damages give the non-breaching party the benefit of the bargain—the economic position they would have achieved with full performance.

In a trade secret misappropriation case, which damages theory would be most appropriate when the defendant's unjust enrichment exceeds the plaintiff's provable lost profits?

Answer: Disgorgement of the defendant's profits attributable to the trade secret use

When unjust enrichment exceeds provable lost profits, courts may award the defendant's profits attributable to the misappropriation under DTSA and the Uniform Trade Secrets Act.

The 'before and after' method for calculating lost profits compares the plaintiff's financial performance:

Answer: During the wrongful conduct period versus pre- and post-wrong periods

The before-and-after method uses the plaintiff's own historical and post-harm performance as benchmarks to estimate damages caused by the defendant's conduct.