District Court Awards Fees After PTAB Cancels Claims
By Alex Li and Matt Johnson - Patent litigation can be quite costly to defend against, that’s no secret. But when can a prevailing defendant recover its attorneys’ fees from the plaintiff, patent holder, and under what circumstances? Under the “American Rule,” each...
Certain PTAB Due Dates Eligible for Extension Based on COVID-19 Delay
By Matt Johnson - On March 31, 2020, the Patent Office issued a Notice of Waiver of Patent-Related Timing Deadlines under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) passed by Congress last week. Under the due date modification authority...
Precedential: Two-Part Framework for Applying § 325(d)
By Josh Nightingale and Matt Johnson - As we noted here, the PTAB recently designated two 35 U.S.C. § 325(d) cases precedential and one informative. Here is an in depth review of a first of the precedential designated decisions. On March 24, 2020, the PTAB designated...
PTAB Designates Two §325(d) Opinions Precedential, One Informative
By Matt Johnson - Last week, the PTAB designated two 35 U.S.C. § 325(d) cases precedential and one informative. These cases discuss the Board’s process for deciding when to use their discretion to deny institution because a Petition raises issues that the Patent...
Judges Disagree on Arthrex, But Rehearing Vote Fails
By Nate Andrews, John Marlott, and Dave Maiorana - On March 23, 2020, the Federal Circuit denied rehearing and rehearing en banc in Arthrex. Arthrex, Inc. v. Smith & Nephew, Inc., No. 18-2140, Order Denying Rehearing and Rehearing En Banc, Dkt. 115. The court...