Inventor Files Pro Se Patent Suit Against Bug Bite Thing in Florida After Three New Jersey Suits Were Dismissed.

The parties and the patent

The case is Cutchins v. Bug Bite Thing, Inc., No. 2:26-cv-14407 (S.D. Fla.), in the Fort Pierce Division. Cutchins lives in Edgewater Park, New Jersey, and says he is the inventor and owner of U.S. Patent 11,399,979, titled Apparatus for Removing Debris From an Organ. The complaint alleges, on information and belief, that Bug Bite Thing is headquartered in Port St. Lucie, Florida.

What the complaint alleges

The complaint alleges that the Bug Bite Thing handheld suction tool infringes one or more claims of the '979 patent, literally or under the doctrine of equivalents, under 35 U.S.C. 271(a). It does not identify which claims and says Cutchins's claim chart will be filed as an exhibit. It says the product is sold through more than 30,000 retail locations in the United States, citing the defendant's website.

The complaint says Cutchins previously sued over the same patent and product in the District of New Jersey, Cutchins v. Bug Bite Thing, Inc., No. 2:22-cv-06885, that the case was closed without prejudice for improper venue, and that the New Jersey court had earlier granted him summary judgment on the merits. The New Jersey docket does not show a summary judgment ruling in his favor. On May 22, 2023, the court dismissed the complaint against Bug Bite Thing for improper venue and dismissed the claims against two individual defendants for failure to state a claim (ECF No. 33). On November 18, 2025, it denied his motion to expedite and for summary judgment and his motion to reopen, and ordered that the case remain closed (ECF No. 49). Cutchins then filed two more suits there in 2026. Cutchins v. Bug Bite Thing, Inc., No. 2:26-cv-00424, was dismissed on January 27, 2026. Cutchins v. Bug Bite Things, Inc., No. 2:26-cv-01584, was dismissed on March 5, 2026 as duplicative of his previous filings, with an order that no further filings related to the matter be permitted without the presiding judge's approval. The Florida complaint mentions only the 2022 case.

Relief requested

Cutchins asks for damages of at least a reasonable royalty under 35 U.S.C. 284, an injunction under 35 U.S.C. 283 if warranted, interest and costs, and fees under 35 U.S.C. 285 if the case is found exceptional. He demands a jury trial.

What to watch next

Watch for Bug Bite Thing's response, including any motion to dismiss for failure to identify an asserted claim, and whether the claim chart is filed.