FedCircuitBlog

This morning the Federal Circuit issued a precedential opinion in a trademark case appealed from the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. The court also issued a nonprecedential order denying as moot a petition for a writ of mandamus directing the Eastern District of Texas to rule on a motion to dismiss or transfer venue. Here are the introductions to the opinion and order.

Here is an update on recent en banc activity at the Federal Circuit in patent cases. The court received a new petition raising questions related to writs of mandamus. The court invited a response to a petition that raised questions concerning the inducement doctrine’s interaction with the Hatch-Waxman amendments, and the court received two amicus briefs in support of this petition. Finally, the court denied a petition for rehearing en banc in a case that raised a question relating to the nexus requirement for secondary considerations of non-obviousness. Here are the details.

This week we are previewing three cases scheduled to be argued next week at the Federal Circuit that attracted amicus briefs. Today we highlight a trademark case, In re Elster. In this case, Elster asks the Federal Circuit to hold that the Lanham Act’s prohibition on any trademark that “[c]onsists of or comprises a name . . . identifying a particular living individual except by his written consent” violates the Constitution’s First Amendment. This is our argument preview.

This morning the Federal Circuit issued a nonprecedential opinion in a veterans case appealed from the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. The opinion addresses the denial of a motion for reconsideration by the Board of Veterans’ Appeals. The court also issued one erratum. Here is the introduction to the opinion and a link to the erratum.

Here is a report on recent news and commentary related to the Federal Circuit and its cases. Today’s report highlights:

• an article detailing the Federal Circuit’s grant of a petition for a writ of mandamus “[i]n its latest rebuke of Judge Alan Albright’s approach to motions to transfer cases out of his court”;
• another article focusing on how the Federal Circuit ruled that a “suit alleging that a Fujifilm subsidiary infringed its patent on an interface for digital mammography” may proceed;
• a blog post discussing how “[w]illful patent infringement can result in enhanced, and in some case treble, damages but not in every instance”; and
• another article noting that the Federal Circuit “affirmed the denial of a preliminary injunction that would have forced the accused infringer to seek dismissal of its petitions for inter partes review.”

This morning the Federal Circuit announced a new joint order with the Court of Federal Claims concerning access to the National Courts Building complex in Washington, D.C. This new order supersedes the court’s previous order dated July 31, 2021. Here is the text of today’s announcement.

This morning the Federal Circuit issued four nonprecedential opinions. Two come in patent cases appealed from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board and involving the same parties. One comes in an employment case appealed from the Merit Systems Protection Board. And one comes in a veterans case appealed from the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. The Federal Circuit also issued a nonprecedential order denying a petition for a writ of mandamus to direct the Eastern District of Texas to stay proceedings in a patent case. Here are the introductions to the opinions and order.

This week we are previewing three cases scheduled to be argued next week at the Federal Circuit that attracted amicus briefs. Today we highlight an Equal Access to Justice Act case, Monroe v. United States. In this case, the United States asks the Federal Circuit to overrule what it characterizes as an abuse of discretion by the trial court in awarding attorney’s fees and expenses to the plaintiff-appellee. This is our argument preview.

Here is a report on recent news and commentary related to the Federal Circuit and its cases. Today’s report highlights:

• a series of blog posts discussing “whether the Federal Circuit is an outlier among the circuit courts in its use of mandamus”;
• an article discussing how “patent owners must maximize their chances of success” before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board given the Federal Circuit’s affirmance rate; and
• another article detailing how “[a] group of steel importers made their latest bid to overturn Trump-era national security tariffs.”

This morning the Federal Circuit issued a nonprecedential order granting a petition for writ of mandamus directing the District Court for Western District of Texas to transfer a patent case. Here is the introduction to the order.