FedCircuitBlog

• Sweat the Small Stuff: Lessons of Federal Circuit Damages Cases – Marking, interest accrual, and awards calculation have been important issues in six Federal Circuit decisions on patent damages, but the Federal Circuit has been reluctant to overturn jury awards in other damages cases.
• Standard Essentiality is a Question for the Fact Finder – Earlier this month, the Federal Circuit held in Godo Kaisha IP Bridge 1 v. TCL Communications Technology Holdings that the trier of fact should determine whether patent claims are essential to all implementations of an industry standard.
• The Little Tucker Act is Alive and Well – The Federal Circuit’s recent decision in National Veterans Legal Services Program v. United States reaffirms to plaintiffs with small non-tort claims against the United States that they can file either in the Court of Federal Claims or in a local district court.

Here’s the latest.

• Qualcomm Urges Fed Circuit to Keep PTAB Win Against Apple – Arguing that Apple is now trying to “manufacture a legal issue,” Qualcomm maintains that the PTAB correctly upheld its patent on a touch-screen function that allows users to toggle between multiple windows.
• CAFC Affirms Sanctions Entered Against Overly Litigious Doctors – Last week, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) affirmed a district court decision in Kahn v. Hemisphere Inc, which involved an action for patent infringement regarding an arteriovenous shunt.
• Government Reliance on Waiver Argument to Keep Price Adjustment Windfall Fails – In articulating limits to the government’s ability to rely on the waiver doctrine to enforce Federal Acquisition Regulation (“FAR”) provisions of questionable legality, the Federal Circuit in effect challenges the government’s approach to measuring the impact of cost accounting practices changes.

Here’s the latest.

• Federal Circuit Extends Pandemic-Related Courthouse Closure – Restrictions on public access to the courthouse have been extended due to the pandemic, limiting entry to staff only until September 14.
• Federal Circuit reverses district court finding of patent ineligibility for sex selection technology patents – In XY, LLC v. Trans Ova Genetics, LC, the court found that the asserted claims were directed toward a patent-eligible improvement of a method for sorting particles, rather than an abstract idea.
• “Untethered” Obviousness Determination Reversed – the Federal Circuit vacated and remanded a PTAB finding of unpatentability because the board did not adequately support its reasoning in Alacritech, Inc. v. Intel Corp.

Here’s the latest.

• Conventional Technologies Used in Unconventional Ways – The Federal Circuit points out that “conventional separation technologies can be used in unconventional ways” in Illumina, Inc. v. Ariosa Diagnostics, Inc.
• Foreign Visitor’s Unborn Child Not a ‘Person’ – A fetus traveling to the United States does not qualify as a legal “person” under the Vaccine Act.
• Judgment as a Discovery Sanction was Appropriate – A TTAB trademark cancellation in the form of a discovery sanction subsequently affirmed by the Federal Circuit.

Here’s the latest.

Here is a report on recent news and commentary related to the Federal Circuit and its cases. Today’s report highlights an article discussing the potential impact of the Federal Circuit’s holding in National Veterans Legal Services Program v. United States on fees for searching and downloading federal case files, more commentary on the confusion generated by the Federal Circuit’s approach to patent eligibility in American Axle & Manufacturing, Inc. v. Neapco Holdings LLC, and news concerning Fitbit’s case decided by the Federal Circuit last Thursday.

Here is a report on recent news and commentary related to the Federal Circuit and its cases. Today’s report highlights an article summarizing a recent decision in a pharmaceutical case, commentary on a recent opinion addressing a bid challenge, and news concerning FanDuel’s challenge to a patent claiming a remote gambling system.

• Federal Circuit May Have its Eye on West Texas Patent Hot Spot – A Federal Circuit order in In re Adobe Inc. may signal the Court’s attention to a new patent litigation hot spot in Central Texas.
• Federal Circuit Reverses TTAB Ruling on Standing – The Federal Circuit overturns TTAB standing ruling in trademark dispute.
• When “Killing Competition” Isn’t Anticompetitive – Antitrust claims fall flat as the Federal Circuit affirms the lower court’s dismissal of Power Analytics Corp. v. Operation Technology, Inc.

Here’s the latest.

• GI Bill Ruling Won’t Come in Time for Fall Classes – Veteran students deprived of GI Bill benefits needed for the Fall semester while waiting for Federal Circuit input.
• Prior Work Can Lead to Joint Inventorship – Work by co-inventors performed independently and publicly disclosed prior to the conception of the claimed invention can constitute joint inventorship.
• Federal Circuit Won’t Revisit Relistor Ruling – Valeant failed to persuade the Federal Circuit to revisit their obviousness decision in Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl. v. Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc.

Here’s the latest.

• Federal Circuit Won’t Undo Intel Wins – The Federal Circuit upheld PTAB rulings in Intel Corp. v. Alacritech, Inc., cementing victory for Intel and other tech companies.
• Flash-of-Genius as Evidence of Eligibility – Steve Morsa filed a new Supreme Court petition using the Court’s “flash of genius” argument to justify granting certiorari.
• Another Arthrex Petition – Arthrex filed its second petition, out of three total petitions for writ of certiorari, challenging the Federal Circuit’s decision in Arthrex, Inc. v. Smith & Nephew, Inc.

Here’s the latest.

• Federal Circuit Affirms District Court’s Eligibility Analysis – In Packet Intelligence, LLC v. Netscout Systems, Inc., the court held NetScout willfully infringed Packet Intelligence’s patents, rejecting NetScout’s argument that the patents were directed toward an abstract idea.
• Nike and Adidas Escape Patent Claims Over Athletic-Shoe Soles – According to a Federal Circuit decision on July 16, the shoe companies did not infringe Akeva’s wear-reducing patent because the companies’ shoes do not have detachable soles.
• Patent invalidity claim is no cure for ITC’s import ban on grippy mugs – On July 16, the Federal Circuit ruled that a party cannot challenge a general ITC exclusion order barring importation of products for infringing a patent by claiming the patent is invalid.

Here’s the latest.