> Since the Supreme Court's T.C. Heartland case, patent cases can only be brought in the defendant's state of incorporation, or "where the defendant . . . has a regular and established place of business."
That is an important distinction that the article overlooked. It also means that unlike the Eastern District, which doesn't contain any major metropolitan areas, the Western District includes Austin (as well as San Antonio, El Paso, and Corpus Christi). Companies will be far more reluctant to pull out of the Western District to avoid patent cases having jurisdiction there like they did with the Eastern District.
That is an important distinction that the article overlooked. It also means that unlike the Eastern District, which doesn't contain any major metropolitan areas, the Western District includes Austin (as well as San Antonio, El Paso, and Corpus Christi). Companies will be far more reluctant to pull out of the Western District to avoid patent cases having jurisdiction there like they did with the Eastern District.