FedCircuitBlog

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 the standard for claim construction. The court also denied a petition in a case raising a question related to burden of persuasion in inter partes review proceedings. Here are the details.

This morning the Federal Circuit released two nonprecedential orders in patent cases denying petitions for writs of mandamus. Notably, both petitions sought to order the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to terminate pending ex parte reexamination proceedings. The court also released an order dismissing an appeal. Here is text from the orders and a link to the dismissal.

Here is this month’s 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 two new cases, one with an upcoming oral argument. Additionally, we highlight an opinion in a patent case, a patent case with a new brief, and argument recaps for three cases that were heard in October. Here are the details.

Late Friday, the Federal Circuit released a nonprecedential order dismissing an appeal. This morning the Federal Circuit released three Rule 36 judgments, each involving the same parties. Here are the links to the order and Rule 36 judgments.

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

• an article about a $948 million patent infringement verdict between Intel and VLSI Technology LLC;
• another article about a Federal Circuit decision finding a generic cancer drug infringes on “Abbvie’s Pharmacyclics and Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen Biotech . . . blockbuster cancer drug Imbruvica”; and
• a blog post about a Federal Circuit decision affirming the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s decision “involving American National Manufacturing and Sleep Number Corp.”

This morning the Federal Circuit released a nonprecedential opinion in a government contract case appealed from the Court of Federal Claims. The Federal Circuit also released two nonprecedential orders. One of the orders denies a petition for a writ of mandamus that sought to order the Western District of Texas to transfer a case to the Northern District of California. The other order dismisses an appeal. Here is the introduction to the opinion, text from the order denying the petition, and a link to the dismissal.

We previously reported that the Federal Circuit proposed to amend several Federal Circuit Rules of Practice and the Practice Notes to three rules, which would take effect on December 1, 2022, if adopted. After receiving public comments, however, the Federal Circuit today announced that it has decided to defer adoption of the proposed amendments until a later date. Here is the full text of today’s announcement.

This morning the Federal Circuit released a precedential opinion in a veterans case appealed from the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. In this opinion, the Federal Circuit affirmed, concluding that the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims correctly interpreted the relevant statutes and that the lower court’s denial of review of state garnishment orders does not violate due process. The Federal Circuit also released a nonprecedential opinion in a case appealed from the Merit Systems Protection Board. Finally, the Federal Circuit released a nonprecedential order dismissing an appeal. Here are the introductions from the opinions and a link to the dismissal.

Here is an update on recent en banc activity at the Federal Circuit. In a pending en banc case raising questions related to whether on-the-job exposure to the recent novel coronavirus entitled federal correctional officers to additional pay pursuant to various federal statutes, the appellant filed his en banc reply brief. As for petitions in patent cases, the court received a new petition raising a question related to anticipation and two responses to a petition raising questions related to patent eligibility. The court also denied three petitions raising questions related the standard for an award of attorneys’ fees, inter partes review estoppel, and assignor estoppel. Here are the details.

This morning the Federal Circuit released a precedential opinion in a patent case appealed from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. In this opinion, the Federal Circuit affirmed the Board’s decision that challenged claims were unpatentable as obvious. The Federal Circuit also released two nonprecedential opinions. The first comes in a patent case appealed from the Eastern District of Wisconsin; the second comes in a copyright, trademark, and patent case appealed from the Southern District of New York. Here are the introductions to the opinions.