FedCircuitBlog

The Federal Circuit announced today that it is proposing a large number of stylistic and substantive amendments to the Federal Circuit Rules of Practice. The court has asked for comments from the public on the proposed amendments. If adopted, the amendments will be effective starting July 1, 2020. Here are the details.

Today the Supreme Court issued its decision in Romag Fasteners, Inc. v. Fossil, Inc., ruling that trademark owners need not prove willfulness to disgorge infringers’ profits. Justice Gorsuch authored the opinion for the Court, which vacated and remanded a contrary decision by the Federal Circuit. Justice Gorsuch’s opinion was joined by every member of the Court except Justice Sotomayor. Here are the details.

This morning the Supreme Court issued its opinion in Thryv, Inc. v. Click-to-Call Technologies, LLC. The Court held that time-bar decisions made by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board when determining whether to institute inter partes review proceedings are not appealable. Justice Ginsburg authored the majority decision. Justices Gorsuch and Sotomayor dissented.

As we reported earlier today, this morning a panel of the Federal Circuit issued a precedential opinion in Ericsson Inc. v. TCL Communication Technology Holdings Ltd. In this case, the panel reached three important conclusions regarding procedural and substantive matters related to allegations of patent eligibility under 35 U.S.C. § 101.

As we reported earlier today, the Federal Circuit issued its precedential opinion in Bozeman Financial LLC v. Federal Reserve Bank, holding that the “[Federal Reserve] Banks are ‘persons’ who may petition for post-issuance review under the AIA.” This holding marks the Federal Circuit’s first significant interpretation of last year’s Supreme Court opinion in Return Mail v. U.S. Postal Service.

This morning the Federal Circuit issued a precedential order denying en banc rehearing in Arthrex, Inc. v. Smith & Nephew, Inc., a nonprecedential opinion in a Veterans case, and a Rule 36 judgment. Here is the text of the order and the introductions to the opinions.

This afternoon the Federal Circuit announced various modifications to its operations, “including suspending the filing of certain paper copies, establishing modified filing and service procedures for parties appearing pro se, authorizing changes to how the Clerk’s Office provides assistance to the public, and providing additional guidance to counsel concerning the scheduling of future court hearings.” The court’s announcement includes links to an administrative order and three notices outlining particular modifications to the court’s procedures. The court said it was making these changes “to continue court operations in response to ongoing public health emergencies.”

Today the Federal Circuit announced that, in light of the coronavirus pandemic, the court has canceled its Judicial Conference previously scheduled for May 15, 2020 in Washington DC, including all related events. The court indicated it hopes to reschedule the conference.

This afternoon the Federal Circuit issued an “Updated Public Advisory Concerning the Federal Circuit’s April 2020 Sitting.” In it, the court announced it is converting all remaining oral arguments still scheduled for April to telephonic hearings. Here are the details.

This morning the Federal Circuit issued one precedential opinion in a patent case. Notably, in a concurrence in that case, all three judges on the panel express their view that, were the relevant statute ambiguous, they “would find that no deference is due” to a prior opinion issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Precedential Opinion Panel. Here are the introductions to the majority and concurring opinions.