Featured / Supreme Court Activity

Recent Supreme Court Activity

Here is an update on recent activity at the Supreme Court in cases decided by the Federal Circuit. Yesterday the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Trump v. V.O.S. Selections, the case challenging President Trump’s tariffs. Also, since our last update, four new petitions have been filed in takings, patent, and pro se cases; two waivers of the right to respond to petitions were filed in a trademark case and a pro se patent case; and an amicus brief was filed in a case challenging the Federal Circuit’s use of Federal Circuit Rule 36 and its application of the Whistleblower Protection Act. Here are the details.

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En Banc Activity / Featured

Recent En Banc Activity

Here is an update on recent en banc activity at the Federal Circuit. Since our last update, the court heard oral argument in the en banc case challenging President Trump’s tariffs, and the court denied three petitions for en banc review, two in patent cases and one in a takings case. Notably, in the denial in one of the patent cases, Chief Judge Moore and Judge Stoll issued a concurring opinion and Judges Dyk and Hughes issued a dissenting opinion. Here are the details.

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En Banc Activity / Featured / Petitions

Recent En Banc Activity

Here is an update on recent en banc activity at the Federal Circuit. Since our last update, the government filed its response brief in President Trump’s appeal challenging judgments and injunctions entered by the Court of International Trade in cases related to his tariffs. Additionally, the Federal Circuit received two new responses to petitions for en banc review filed in patent cases along with two new amicus briefs in a patent case and a takings case. Finally, the court recently denied one petition for en banc review in a patent case. Here are the details.

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Featured / Panel Activity

Update on Important Panel Activity

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 several new opinions issued, relating to takings, trade, patents, and trademarks. Also, there was one principal and response brief filed in a patent case and two new reply briefs filed in two other patent cases. There were no new cases pending before panels of the Federal Circuit that attracted at least one amicus brief. Here are the details.

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Featured / Opinions / Panel Activity

Opinion Summary – United Water Conservation District v. United States

Last month, the Federal Circuit issued its opinion in United Water Conservation District v. United Statesa case we have been following because it attracted an amicus brief. In this appeal, the Federal Circuit reviewed a dismissal of a takings claim by the Court of Federal Claims. That court held that a restriction of water rights did not constitute a physical taking but rather a regulatory taking, which presented an unripe controversy. Judge Lourie, Judge Hughes, and Judge Gilstrap (sitting by designation from the Eastern District of Texas) heard the oral argument. Judge Lourie authored a unanimous opinion for the panel affirming the judgment. This is our opinion summary.

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Opinions

Opinions & Orders – April 2, 2025

This morning, the Federal Circuit released one precedential opinion and one nonprecedential opinion. The precedential opinion comes in a takings case on appeal from the Court of Federal Claims, while the nonprecedential opinion comes in a patent case on appeal from the District of Delaware. Here are the introductions to the opinions.   

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Argument Recap / Panel Activity

Argument Recap – United Water Conservation District v. United States

Last week, the Federal Circuit heard oral argument in United Water Conservation District v. United States, a takings case that attracted an amicus brief. In this case, the Federal Circuit is reviewing a dismissal of a takings claim by the Court of Federal Claims. That court held that a restriction of water rights did not constitute a physical taking but rather a regulatory taking, which presented an unripe controversy. Judge Lourie, Judge Hughes, and Judge Gilstrap (sitting by designation from the Eastern District of Texas) heard the oral argument. This is our argument recap.

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Featured / Panel Activity

Update on Important Panel Activity

Here is an update on activity in cases pending before panels of the Federal Circuit where the case involves 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 new opinions, one in a case related to the rulemaking authority of the Department of Veterans Affairs, another in a takings case related to water rights, and another related to patents alleged to be improperly listed in the FDA’s Orange Book. We also highlight five new cases, two related to trade agreements, two related to takings claims, and one patent case. Finally, we note new briefing in a patent case we have been tracking. Here are the details.

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Court Week / Featured

Court Week – January 2025 – What You Need to Know

This week (and next Monday) is Court Week at the Federal Circuit. The court originally scheduled 12 panels to hear 72 cases, with the plan to hear oral argument in 45 cases. Given the National Day of Mourning for President Carter, however, the court last week announced that it would not open on Thursday, canceling two panels. As always, the court provides access to live audio of its arguments via the Federal Circuit’s YouTube channel. This month, four cases scheduled for oral argument attracted amicus briefs. Here’s what you need to know about these four cases.

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Argument Preview / Panel Activity

Argument Preview – United Water Conservation District v. United States

As we highlighted yesterday, four cases scheduled to be argued in January at the Federal Circuit attracted amicus briefs. One of those cases is United Water Conservation District v. United States. In this case, United Water Conservation District appeals a judgment of the Court of Federal Claims, which dismissed its takings claim. The court held that a restriction of water rights did not constitute a physical taking but rather a regulatory taking, which presented an unripe controversy. This is our argument preview.

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