National MacHinery Company v. Waterbury Farrel Foundry and MacHine Company and Textron, Inc.

The defendant in this patent suit appeals from an order of the district court denying leave for it to amend its answer so as to assert permissive counterclaims arising out of two patents similar to those on which the plaintiff brought suit. The defendants’ motion was made more than two years after the answer was filed. It was denied by the district judge who said, “The tardy injection of these new issues by the defendant will set off a new string of discovery and disclosure which will undoubtedly delay this case many more months; the plaintiff will be unfairly prejudiced in getting its case…