Here is a report on recent news and commentary related to the Federal Circuit and its cases. Today’s report highlights:
- an article covering reactions to the recent recommendation by a special committee of Federal Circuit judges that “Judge Pauline Newman should be disciplined for refusing to comply with orders related to an investigation into her ability to perform her duties”;
- a blog post providing an update on the special committee’s recommendation; and
- an article about how Apple has argued to the Federal Circuit that the “U.S. International Trade Commission’s holding that Apple Watch imports should be banned for infringing another company’s patents risks turning the agency into a standard patent litigation forum, rather than one meant to rein in harmful trade practices.”
Michael Shapiro and Riddhi Setty authored an article for Bloomberg Law covering reactions to the recent recommendation by a special committee of Federal Circuit judges that “Judge Pauline Newman should be disciplined for refusing to comply with orders related to an investigation into her ability to perform her duties.” They noted how the “investigation was already in the public eye in a way that’s unusual, since proceedings concerning the mental health of judges are often carried out discreetly.” They also highlighted how Arthur Hellman, a professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, found the “public release of such fine-grained details at this stage of a judicial disability probe” to be unprecedented.
Dennis Crouch wrote a blog post for Patently-O providing an update on the special committee’s recommendation. He noted how the “committee consisting of Chief Judge Moore, former Chief Judge Prost, and Judge Taranto concluded that it had authority and a reasonable basis to order medical examinations and records from Judge Newman” and that “her refusal to cooperate constitutes misconduct with no good cause shown.” He also noted how “Judge Newman had provided her own medical report purporting to show her competence.”
Dani Kass wrote an article for Law360 about how Apple has argued to the Federal Circuit that the “U.S. International Trade Commission’s holding that Apple Watch imports should be banned for infringing another company’s patents risks turning the agency into a standard patent litigation forum, rather than one meant to rein in harmful trade practices.” She also highlighted AliveCor’s statement that it is “pleased that President Biden upheld the ITC’s final determination to hold Apple accountable for infringing patents that underpin our industry-leading ECG technology.”