Microsoft to Seek New Judge in Patent Case

Microsoft Corp. plans to ask for a new judge to preside over a federal patent trial in which it would try to avoid paying $521 million in damages.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, without comment, said Microsoft could appeal U.S. District Judge James B. Zagel’s refusal to step down from the case that centers on whether the company’s Internet Explorer browser infringes a patent. Zagel oversaw the August 2003 trial that ended in a jury finding of patent infringement and the damage award.

The case was returned to Zagel after the appeals court granted Microsoft a new trial over the validity of the patent, owned by the University of California and licensed to closely held Eolas Technologies Inc.