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News & Updates

No Infringement for One Structure Providing Multiple Functions

MAGNOLIA MEDICAL TECHNOLOGIES, INC. v. KURIN, INC. Authored by: Jeremy J. Gustrowsky When blood is drawn from a patient, microbes on the skin can contaminate the sample, leading to false-positive test results and unnecessary treatments. Both Magnolia Medical Technologies and…

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Federal Circuit Says Damages Can Be Tied to Unaccused Products When There’s a Causal Link

EXAFER LTD v. MICROSOFT CORPORATION Authored by: Jeremy J. Gustrowsky Exafer Ltd. sued Microsoft Corporation, alleging that Microsoft’s Azure Platform infringed two of Exafer’s patents: U.S. Patent Nos. 8,325,733 and 8,971,335. These patents relate to systems and methods for optimizing…

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Inventor’s “Not Sure It’s a Good Idea to Disclose” Comment Wasn’t Enough for Summary Judgment on Inequitable Conduct

GLOBAL TUBING LLC v. TENARIS COILED TUBES LLC Authored by: Jeremy J. Gustrowsky The Federal Circuit vacated summary judgment on both sides of a dispute over coiled tubing patents, finding that genuine factual disputes remained about whether an inventor deliberately…

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Genetically Engineered Host Cells Are Not “Nature’s Handiwork,” Federal Circuit Rules

REGENXBIO INC. v. SAREPTA THERAPEUTICS, INC. Authored by: Jeremy J. Gustrowsky The Federal Circuit reversed a district court decision that had invalidated claims of U.S. Patent No. 10,526,617 as patent-ineligible under 35 U.S.C. § 101. The patent, owned by REGENXBIO…

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Patent Owner’s Shortcut Through a Complex Circuit Leads to Dead End on Infringement

GENUINE ENABLING TECHNOLOGY LLC v. SONY GROUP CORPORATION Authored by: Jeremy J. Gustrowsky When a patent claim uses “means-plus-function” language, it doesn’t describe a specific physical structure. Instead, it describes a *function*, and the patent’s specification fills in the blanks…

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Federal Circuit Illuminates the Line Between Expert Admissibility and Credibility in $42 Million Christmas Tree Patent Verdict

WILLIS ELECTRIC CO., LTD. v. POLYGROUP LTD. Authored by: Jeremy J. Gustrowsky The Federal Circuit affirmed a $42.5 million jury verdict in a patent dispute over pre-lit artificial Christmas trees, providing important guidance on when expert testimony on damages should…

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Magnets Bonded to Plastic Escape Trade Duties by Losing Their Flex

MAGNUM MAGNETICS CORP. v. US Authored by: Jeremy J. Gustrowsky The Federal Circuit recently affirmed that plastic shelf dividers containing magnets are not subject to antidumping and countervailing duty orders covering “raw flexible magnets” from China. The case centered on…

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Grammar Rules Win the Day in Streaming Patent Dispute

NETFLIX, INC. v. DIVX, LLC Authored by: Jeremy J. Gustrowsky The Federal Circuit recently reversed a Patent Trial and Appeal Board decision in a case involving U.S. Patent No. 10,225,588, which covers systems for streaming partially encrypted media content. The…

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No Notice-and-Comment Required for PTO’s IPR Institution Guidelines, Federal Circuit Rules

APPLE INC. v. SQUIRES Authored by: Jeremy J. Gustrowsky When technology giants Apple, Cisco, Google, and Intel challenged the Patent and Trademark Office’s instructions for declining inter partes review (IPR) petitions, they argued the agency should have followed formal notice-and-comment…

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Patent Holder Loses Antitrust Challenge After Tying Product Purchases to License Agreements

INGEVITY CORPORATION v. BASF CORPORATION Authored by: Jeremy J. Gustrowsky The Federal Circuit recently upheld a multimillion-dollar antitrust verdict against a patent holder who conditioned patent licenses on customers’ exclusive purchase of its products. The case centered on carbon honeycombs—activated…

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Happy National Inventors Day!

Today, we get to celebrate a truly special occasion—National Inventors Day! Mark your calendars, because February 11 is the day we honor the brilliance of inventors everywhere. A little history: back on January 13, 1983, President Ronald Reagan officially declared…

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Streaming Patent Claims Ruled Abstract Despite Technical-Sounding Language

GOTV STREAMING, LLC v. NETFLIX, INC. Authored by: Jeremy J. Gustrowsky The Federal Circuit handed Netflix a complete victory in a patent dispute involving technology for delivering video content to mobile devices. GoTV Streaming owned three related patents describing methods…

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