Here is an update on recent activity at the Supreme Court in cases decided by the Federal Circuit. It was another quiet week at the Supreme Court, with only one new petition, one brief, and four denials of petitions.
Activity in Granted Cases
No new activity.
Activity in Petition Cases
New Petitions
In Harris v. United States, a pro se petitioner, Harris, asked the Court to review a summary affirmance of the judgment in his case against the Internal Revenue Service.
New Responses
No new responses were filed this week.
New Reply Briefs
In Cisco Systems, Inc. v. SRI International, Inc., Cisco Systems argued that,
“the panel majority in this case held that patent claims describing nothing more than the abstract idea of collecting and analyzing information in the context of a computer network can survive § 101 review.” According to Cisco, “[t]his Court’s review is . . . necessary to ensure uniformity within the Federal Circuit and conformity with this Court’s own precedent.” Cisco goes on to say that, “[a]t bottom, this case is about a divided panel’s attempt to push the bounds of patentable subject matter beyond the limits already set by both this Court and the Federal Circuit.” As a result, it says, “[t]his Court should grant certiorari to reaffirm that case law and to make clear that the abstract idea of collecting and analyzing information, standing alone, is not patentable—even if it purports to improve computer functioning or to solve a technological problem.”
New Amicus Briefs
No new amicus briefs were filed this week.
New Grants and Denials
The Supreme Court denied four petitions this week:
- Trading Technologies International, Inc. v. IBG LLC (patent eligibility)
- ChargePoint, Inc. v. SemaConnect, Inc. (patent eligibility)
- Sharpe v. United States (pro se)
- Smith v. Wilkie (Equal Access to Justice Act)