A. David Mazzone notes on the Polaroid-Kodak lawsuit
Content Description
Notes kept by United States District Judge A. David Mazzone from May 1, 1989 to November 20, 1989, while presiding over the trial phase of the Polaroid vs. Kodak patent infringement lawsuit. The handwritten notes include references to trial exhibits, his opinion of witnesses, questions raised, recess breaks, and his general thoughts about the trial. The notes were written in abbreviations, and read like a play-by-play of the trial as each witness testified. Included with Mazzone's notes are stapled-in notes written in a different hand, most likely by one of Mazzone’s law clerks regarding aspects of the trial, comments about lawyers’ arguments, and interpretation of case law. Also included are short biographies of witnesses; and printed copies of the original order and opinion, 1990; rule 60(a) memo and order; and the amended order and opinion, 1991.
Dates
- 1989-1991
Creator
- Mazzone, A. David (Armando David) (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research. Materials stored onsite. Please contact specialcollectionsref@hbs.edu for more information regarding access procedures.
Extent
.5 linear feet (1 box)Biographical / Historical
Armando David Mazzone was born in Everett, Massachusetts in 1928. He received a BA from Harvard College in 1950. He enlisted and served in the United States Army in the Korean War for two years. After the war, he enrolled in DePaul University Law School and graduated in 1957. Mazzone opened a private law practice in Chicago, Illinois for a short time before returning to Massachusetts, where he served as Assistant District Attorney for Middlesex County for two years and Assistant United States Attorney for four. Governor Michael Dukakis appointed Mazzone to the Superior Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1974. President Jimmy Carter nominated him for the United States District Court of Massachusetts in 1978. Mazzone replaced the judge that presided over the discovery period of patent infringement lawsuit Polaroid brought against Kodak, which began in 1976. Mazzone presided over the trial period of the patent infringement lawsuit from 1989 to 1991. The ruling was the largest ever awarded for a patent infrigement suit, which required Kodak to pay Polaroid $909.4 million dollars. He served the court as a judge for 26 years and assumed senior status in 1993. Mazzone died in 2004.
Physical Location
MANU
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Martha Mazzone, October 2018.
Creator
- Mazzone, A. David (Armando David) (Person)
- Author
- Ben Johnson
- Date
- March 2019
- Description rules
- dacs
- Language of description
- und
- EAD ID
- bak00881
Repository Details
Part of the Baker Library Special Collections and Archives, Harvard Business School Repository
Baker Library Special Collections and Archives holds unique resources that focus on the evolution of business and industry, as well as the records of the Harvard Business School, documenting the institution's development over the last century. These rich and varied collections support research in a diverse range of fields such as business, economic, social and cultural history as well as the history of science and technology.
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