FedCircuitBlog

Here is an update on recent en banc activity at the Federal Circuit in patent cases. Since our last update, in the only pending en banc patent case, which presents a question concerning a district court’s responsibility to scrutinize a patentee’s reliance on supposedly comparable licenses, the opening en banc brief was filed, the Federal Circuit issued an order indicating parts of the opening brief went beyond the scope of en banc rehearing, and five new amicus briefs were filed. Additionally, a new petition was filed raising questions related to reliance on expert testimony in applying the doctrine of equivalents. Finally, the court denied two petitions raising questions regarding the written description requirement, obvious-type double patenting, and attorney fees. Here are the details.

This morning, the Federal Circuit released three precedential opinions, one nonprecedential opinion, and one nonprecedential order. Two of the precedential opinions come in patent cases. Notably, in one of these two cases Judge Reyna concurred in part and dissented in part. The third precedential opinion affirms the dismissal of an appeal by the Merit Systems Protection Board for lack of jurisdiction. The nonprecedential opinion comes in an employment case, and the nonprecedential order is a dismissal. Here are the introductions to the opinions and a link to the dismissal.