Here is an update on recent en banc activity at the Federal Circuit in patent cases. While there were no recent petitions, responses to petitions, or denials of petitions, the court did receive several amicus briefs. One amicus brief came in Apple Inc. v. Qualcomm Inc., a case concerning the panel’s decision to deny competitor standing in an appeal from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. Three came in Amgen Inc. v. Sanofi, Aventisub LLC, where the petition raised questions related to “the panel’s new enablement test for genus claims with functional limitations” and whether that test is consistent with Supreme Court precedent on point. Here are the details.
En Banc Cases
No new activity to report.
En Banc Petitions
Amicus Briefs
The court received an amicus brief in Apple Inc. v. Qualcomm Inc. from Unified Patents, LLC in support of Apple Inc. In the brief, Unified Patents, “a membership organization dedicated to deterring non-practicing entities . . . from extracting nuisance settlements based on patents that are likely invalid,” argues that the panel improperly rejected Apple’s basis for competitor standing to appeal an adverse decision in an inter partes review proceeding.
The court also received three amicus briefs in Amgen Inc. v. Sanofi, Aventisub LLC. Notably, one of the amicus briefs was filed by a number of intellectual property professors, who noted that “genus claims have traditionally been understood to be critical for meaningful patent protection in the chemical industry” and that “the [panel’s] heightened enablement standard frustrates patenting and innovation” in the industry. Here is a list with links to the amicus briefs: