U.S. District Judge Alan D. Albright of the Western District of Texas recently ruled to extend the temporary restraining order (TRO) granted to BMW in its counterclaim against non-practicing entity Onesta. The TRO will remain in effect until January 13, 2026, to prevent substantial irreparable harm to BMW and the U.S. district court's jurisdiction.

The dispute traces back to October 2025 when Onesta filed three patent infringement lawsuits against BMW in Munich Regional Court I, Germany—two involving U.S. patents. The German court invoked precedent established by the European Court of Justice in BSH v. Electrolux, asserting non-German patents could be litigated.

BMW subsequently filed a declaratory judgment action against Onesta in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, followed by motions for an antisuit injunction (ASI) and an anti-antisuit injunction (AASI).

Initially, Judge Albright granted a temporary restraining order (TRO), which is more preliminary than a preliminary injunction (PI), effective through December 30, 2025.

On December 29, 2025, BMW filed its brief in support of its motion. The following day, Judge Albright granted BMW's request to extend the TRO on the counterclaim. This marks the first and likely final extension, with Judge Albright scheduled to hold a Zoom hearing on the motion on January 13, 2026. The extension was granted based on the determination that there exists a significant risk of irreparable harm to BMW and to the jurisdiction of the U.S. District Court, preventing Onesta from obtaining and enforcing an anti-antisuit injunction (AASI) in Munich.

Notably, Dr. Georg Werner, the presiding judge in the Munich case, will be sworn in as a judge of the newly established Unified Patent Court in early January 2026. The case has also attracted participation from several prominent intellectual property scholars, with both parties submitting expert opinions from renowned German and American law professors, highlighting the case's cutting-edge nature and complexity. IP Finance will continue to follow developments in this case.