A complete defense to a patent infringement lawsuit will often have one or more procedural components. Often, a patentee will try to hale the defendant into a faraway jurisdiction to increase the costs associated with defending the lawsuit. For example, a California patentee will often sue a Pennsylvania-based accused infringer in California.

In such a case, the Pennsylvania-based accused infringer will have one or more procedural defenses, such as lack of jurisdiction or improper venue. The infringer may also move to transfer the case to Pennsylvania.

Also, in cases in which there are parallel cases or proceedings pending, such as an earlier-filed declaratory judgment action or an interference in the USPTO, the accused infringer may be entitled to a stay of the proceedings. However, stays are not that common.