Patently-O

Patent Docket Heading into the Supreme Court’s Long Conference

Supreme Court patent docket swells with 13 petitions, two more pending, and major fights over IPR review, eligibility, damages, and claim scope.
Patently-O

When the PTAB’s Broadest Reasonable Interpretation Goes Too Far

The Federal Circuit has vacated a PTAB obviousness rejection of a catheter claim, holding that the Board's reading of the claim term "flow barrier" was unreasonably broad. In re Incept LLC, No.
Patently-O

When R&D Counts as a Domestic Industry

Apple has asked the Supreme Court to review the Federal Circuit's decision upholding the ITC's import ban on Apple Watches with blood-oxygen sensing. Apple Inc. v. ITC, No. 26-316 (petition filed Sept ...
Patently-O

Prof John Duffy Next USPTO General Counsel

Professor John Duffy (UVA) appears to be in line to take over as USPTO General Counsel. GC is the Director's principal legal advisor and runs an office of about 130 lawyers that include the Office of ...
Patently-O

The Federal Circuit Edits Its Damages Footnote in Constellation Designs v. LG

The "optimization" claims of US8842761 and US10693700 are ineligible under § 101; The "constellation" claims of US11019509 and US11018922 are eligible; The infringement verdict stands (denial of JMOL ...
Patently-O

USPTO Fee Setting Authority and PTAB Institution Reform

USPTO's fee setting authority is set to expire on September 16, 2026. The Senate passed a continuing resolution for a short extension - to December 11, 2026 (after the mid-term election). Congress ...
Patently-O

Design Patents Did It: How China Passed Japan in US Patent Grants

China now receives more US patents than Japan. The crossover happened in 2024, and the projection for 2026 puts China around 58k compared with Japan's 45k. But, this total does hide a big exception.
Patently-O

Right vs. Remedy: No Standing to Challenge the Patent Cover’s ‘Right to Exclude’ Promise

Every issued patent comes with a promise granting "to the person(s) having title to this patent the right to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, or selling the invention throughout ...
Patently-O

Can Harassment Risk Alone Support Obviousness-Type Double Patenting?

With the USPTO's recent brief, In re Ablynx N.V., No. 2026-1333 (Fed. Cir.) is now teed up for the Federal Circuit to decide the nationwide policy on obviousness-type double patenting. The case ...
Patently-O

Provisional Prior Art

Patent law cases often turn on timing. In our first-to-file system, the question often boils down to whether the patent at issue was effectively filed before the competing patent application. This ...
Patently-O

SCOTUS: Patent Owner Joins the Section 314(d) Cert Queue

FedEx has asked the Supreme Court to decide whether any court can make the Patent Office follow 35 U.S.C. § 312(a)(2), the requirement that an IPR petitioner identify “all real parties in interest.” ...
Patently-O

Back to 1789: Collision Asks the Federal Circuit to Rewrite the eBay Factors

Collision Communications filed its opening brief yesterday in Collision Communications, Inc. v. Samsung Electronics Co., No. 2026-1893 (Fed. Cir.), appealing Judge Gilstrap’s refusal to enjoin Samsung ...