FedCircuitBlog

Two cases being argued in May at the Federal Circuit attracted amicus briefs. One of these cases is Regents of the University of California v. Broad Institute, Inc. In this case, the Federal Circuit will review a judgment of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board in an interference proceeding concerning competing patent applications related to the CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing system. This is our argument preview.

This morning, the Federal Circuit released a precedential opinion in a trademark case, a nonprecedential order granting a motion to dismissal an appeal given that a judgment was non-final, and another nonprecedential order dismissing a petition based on joint stipulation of voluntary dismissal. Here are the introductions to the opinion and order dismissing the appeal and a link to the other dismissal.

Here is an update on activity in cases pending before panels of the Federal Circuit where the cases involve at least one amicus brief. We keep track of these cases in the “Other Cases” section of our blog. Today with respect to these cases we highlight three opinions in cases that attracted amicus briefs: an Equal Pay Act case, a vaccine case, and a veterans case. Additionally, we highlight two new patent cases, new briefing in two patent cases, and oral arguments in nine cases last and this month. Here are the details.

This morning, the Federal Circuit released a precedential opinion in a pro se case appealed from the Court of Federal Claims. The Federal Circuit affirmed the lower court’s dismissal for lack of jurisdiction. The Federal Circuit also released a nonprecedential opinion in a patent case. Notably, Judge Dyk dissented in part. The court also released two other nonprecedential opinions, one in another case dismissed by the Court of Federal Claims for lack of jurisdiction and one in an appeal from a judgment of the Merit Systems Protection Board. The Federal Circuit also released two nonprecedential orders dismissing appeals. Here are the introductions to the opinions and links to the dismissals.

This morning, the Federal Circuit released a nonprecedential opinion in a case appealed from the Merit Systems Protection Board. Here is the opinion’s introduction.

The Federal Circuit issued an opinion in late February in a case that attracted an amicus brief, Beaudette v. McDonough. This is a veterans case in which the Federal Circuit reviewed whether the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims erred in issuing a writ of mandamus to allow the Board of Veterans’ Appeals to hear appeals of adverse decisions pertaining to the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers. In an opinion authored by Chief Judge Moore that was joined by Judges Dyk and Stoll, the Federal Circuit affirmed the judgment of the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. The Federal Circuit held that the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims properly issued the writ of mandamus because the “Beaudettes had no adequate alternative means to obtain the relief requested” and the Board of Veteran’s Appeals “has the authority under 38 C.F.R. § 20.104(c) to determine the types of appeals within its jurisdiction.” This is our opinion summary.

This morning, the Federal Circuit released one precedential opinion. The opinion comes in a case brought under the Indian Tucker Act and involving several claims related to water rights and water-related infrastructure, including breach of trust, breach of contract, and takings claims. The panel affirmed in part and vacated and remanded in part a judgment of the Court of Federal Claims, which had held in favor of the United States on all of the plaintiff-appellant’s claims. Notably, Judge Reyna concurred in part and dissented in part. Here is the introduction to the majority opinion and Judge Reyna’s opinion.

After two days without releasing any opinions or orders on its website, this morning the Federal Circuit released a nonprecedential order dismissing an appeal. That’s it. Here’s a link to the dismissal.

Late last month the Federal Circuit issued its opinion in Boyer v. United States, an Equal Pay Act case that we have been following because it attracted an amicus brief. In this case, the Federal Circuit reviewed a decision by the Court of Federal Claims to grant the government’s motion for summary judgment rejecting a pay discrimination claim under the Equal Pay Act. In an opinion by Judge Dyk joined by Judges Chen and Stoll, the Federal Circuit reversed. The court found that “the EPA applies equally to the United States as to other employers and that mere reliance on prior compensation standing alone is not an affirmative defense to a prima facie case under the EPA, unless the employer can demonstrate that the prior pay itself was not based on sex.”

For the second day in a row the Federal Circuit did not release any opinions or orders on its website.