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(Related pages on {{SITENAME}}: * Summary judgment: a pre-trial judgement on whether the case has merit (is worth taking) * Judgment as a matter of law (JMOL): like a summary judgement, but during trial)
 
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{{navbox}}This article describes which bodies handle appeals and disputes of patent validity in the [[USA]].
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{{Courts box}}
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{{infobox usa}}
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This article describes which bodies handle approval, rejection, and disputes of patent validity in the [[USA]].
  
* Patents are granted by the [[USPTO]]
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==The stages of litigation==
* The first place you go to contest a patent's validity is the '''Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences''' or "'''BPAI'''"
 
* To contest the BPAI's decision (check this: can you go to a state court?)
 
* To contest this ruling, the '''United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit''' (or "'''CAFC'''")
 
** When the CAFC hears a case '''en banc''', this means that all the judges participated, not just a subset; this is usually done for important cases where the CAFC wants to make a stable ruling
 
* To contest this, you can apply to the '''[[US Supreme Court|Supreme Court]]''' (or sometimes "'''SCOTUS'''")
 
* If they accept the case, they will rule on it with the highest authority of the USA
 
  
Examples of cases that went all the way to the Supreme Court are the [[Diamond v. Diehr (1981, USA)|Diamond v. Diehr]] case of 1981, and the [[Bilksi v. Kappos]] case of 2009.
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* Patent applications are considered at the [[USPTO]] by an examiner
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* Disputes can be taken to the USPTO's ''[[Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences]]'' (BPAI)
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* To contest a BPAI decision, you go to the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit]] (CAFC){{ref}}
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* When you sue someone for patent infringement, the validity of the patent can be called into question, and this litigation is in a District Court
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** When suing someone, you might also apply to the [[United States International Trade Commission|International Trade Commission]] to have imports of their products blocked
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*** Decisions by the ITC can be appealed to the CAFC.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.patentlyo.com/patent/2010/09/gpg-v-itc-federal-circuit-review-of-itc-determinations.html|title=GPG v. ITC: Federal Circuit Review of ITC Determinations|quote=ITC determinations are subject to review by the Federal Circuit under the standards of the Administrative Procedure Act, which allows for de novo review of legal determinations and review of factual findings for substantial evidence.}}</ref>
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* To contest the district court's ruling, you go to the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit]] (CAFC)
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** Cases are heard by a "panel" with three judges
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** Sometimes cases are heard "'''en banc''', by the entire court:
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*** This can happen when a party poses a question to the Supreme Court, the Supreme Court can send it back to the CAFC for an ''en banc'' hearing
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*** TO BE CHECKED: Can the CAFC also decide for itself to hear a case ''en banc'', for important cases where the CAFC wants to set a clear precedent?
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* To contest the CAFC's ruling, you can apply to the '''[[US Supreme Court|Supreme Court]]''' (sometimes abbreviated "'''SCOTUS'''")
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** This is called applying for certiorari
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* If the Supreme Court grants certiorari, they will rule on it with the highest authority of the USA
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** Alternatively, as mentioned above, the Supreme Court might send the case back to the CAFC for an ''en banc'' hearing
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** If the Supreme Court denies certiorari, then the CAFC's ruling stands.  This does not mean the Supreme Court endorses the CAFC's ruling, but is often interpreted in that way
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==Hierarchy and vacating lower rulings==
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When the Supreme Court gives its opinion on a case, not only does this opinion override the opinion of the lower court, but the Supreme Court can also issue a "grant-vacate-remand order" to nullify certain other rulings of lower courts which may give turn out differently in the light of the Supreme Court's newer ruling.
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For example, in the 2009 ''Mayo Collaborative Services v. Prometheus Laboratories, Inc.'' case the CAFC upheld a patent, saying that it passed the [[machine-or-transformation]] test.<ref>http://www.patentlyo.com/patent/2009/09/patentable-subject-matter-federal-circuit-upholds-patentability-of-drug-dosage-method-claim.html</ref>  (The [[US Supreme Court]] took the case in 2012 [[Mayo ruling by US Supreme Court on 20 March 2012|and disagreed]].) After tweaking that test in 2010 in the [[Bilski v. Kappos (2010, USA)|Bilski v. Kappos]] ruling, the Supreme Court vacated the CAFC's 2009 ''Mayo'' ruling and ordered a retrial.<ref>http://www.patentlyo.com/patent/2011/06/supreme-court-to-revisit-patentable-subject-matter-eligibility.html</ref>  (In the retrial, the CAFC reached the same conclusion; the Supreme Court then agreed to hear the Mayo case.)
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A Supreme Court ruling not only overrides the preceding CAFC ruling, but the Supreme Court can also vacate other court rulings of lower courts that may
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==Federal Rules of Civil Procedure==
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Abbreviated FRCP.
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===12(b)(6): motion for quick dismissal===
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[http://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/frcp/rule_12 Rule 12(b)(6)] can be used by a defendant to file a motion for dismissal.
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This was successfully done in the case [[Uniloc v. Red Hat and Rackspace (2013, USA)]], where the judge agreed that Uniloc's patent was clearly invalid and there was thus no grounds for a court case.<ref>http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20130124104536791</ref>
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==Judge's titles==
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At the [[United States International Trade Commission|ITC]]: administrative law judge
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At the CAFC: Circuit Judge NAME
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At the Supreme Court: Justice NAME
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==Terminology and procedures==
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* Summary judgment: a pre-trial judgement on whether the case has merit (is worth taking) (see: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summary_judgment Wikipedia])
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* Judgment as a matter of law (JMOL): like a summary judgement, but during trial (see: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judgment_as_a_matter_of_law Wikipedia])
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==Related pages on {{SITENAME}}==
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* [[Case law in the USA]]
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* [[How to submit an amicus brief in the USA]]
  
 
==External links==
 
==External links==
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* http://www.uspto.gov/go/dcom/bpai/index.html - The USPTO's BPAI
 
* http://www.uspto.gov/go/dcom/bpai/index.html - The USPTO's BPAI
* http://www.cafc.uscourts.gov/
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* [http://archive.recapthelaw.org/search/advanced/ RECAP - an archive of "PACER" documents] - this is only a small subset of US court documents, but it's the only publicly available repository
* http://www.supremecourtus.gov/
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* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Rules_of_Civil_Procedure Federal Rules of Civil Procedure], '''Wikipedia'''
  
===Wikipedia articles===
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==References==
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Court_of_Appeals_for_the_Federal_Circuit United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit]
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{{reflist}}
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supreme_Court_of_the_United_States Supreme Court of the United States]
 
  
  
 
{{footer}}
 
{{footer}}
[[Category:USA]]
 
[[Category:Case law in the USA]]
 

Latest revision as of 04:34, 17 September 2014

Series:
About patent courts
and appeals in:

Related articles:

This article describes which bodies handle approval, rejection, and disputes of patent validity in the USA.

The stages of litigation


  • When you sue someone for patent infringement, the validity of the patent can be called into question, and this litigation is in a District Court
    • When suing someone, you might also apply to the International Trade Commission to have imports of their products blocked
      • Decisions by the ITC can be appealed to the CAFC.[1]


  • To contest the district court's ruling, you go to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC)
    • Cases are heard by a "panel" with three judges
    • Sometimes cases are heard "en banc, by the entire court:
      • This can happen when a party poses a question to the Supreme Court, the Supreme Court can send it back to the CAFC for an en banc hearing
      • TO BE CHECKED: Can the CAFC also decide for itself to hear a case en banc, for important cases where the CAFC wants to set a clear precedent?
  • To contest the CAFC's ruling, you can apply to the Supreme Court (sometimes abbreviated "SCOTUS")
    • This is called applying for certiorari
  • If the Supreme Court grants certiorari, they will rule on it with the highest authority of the USA
    • Alternatively, as mentioned above, the Supreme Court might send the case back to the CAFC for an en banc hearing
    • If the Supreme Court denies certiorari, then the CAFC's ruling stands. This does not mean the Supreme Court endorses the CAFC's ruling, but is often interpreted in that way

Hierarchy and vacating lower rulings

When the Supreme Court gives its opinion on a case, not only does this opinion override the opinion of the lower court, but the Supreme Court can also issue a "grant-vacate-remand order" to nullify certain other rulings of lower courts which may give turn out differently in the light of the Supreme Court's newer ruling.

For example, in the 2009 Mayo Collaborative Services v. Prometheus Laboratories, Inc. case the CAFC upheld a patent, saying that it passed the machine-or-transformation test.[2] (The US Supreme Court took the case in 2012 and disagreed.) After tweaking that test in 2010 in the Bilski v. Kappos ruling, the Supreme Court vacated the CAFC's 2009 Mayo ruling and ordered a retrial.[3] (In the retrial, the CAFC reached the same conclusion; the Supreme Court then agreed to hear the Mayo case.)

A Supreme Court ruling not only overrides the preceding CAFC ruling, but the Supreme Court can also vacate other court rulings of lower courts that may

Federal Rules of Civil Procedure

Abbreviated FRCP.

12(b)(6): motion for quick dismissal

Rule 12(b)(6) can be used by a defendant to file a motion for dismissal.

This was successfully done in the case Uniloc v. Red Hat and Rackspace (2013, USA), where the judge agreed that Uniloc's patent was clearly invalid and there was thus no grounds for a court case.[4]

Judge's titles

At the ITC: administrative law judge

At the CAFC: Circuit Judge NAME

At the Supreme Court: Justice NAME

Terminology and procedures

  • Summary judgment: a pre-trial judgement on whether the case has merit (is worth taking) (see: Wikipedia)
  • Judgment as a matter of law (JMOL): like a summary judgement, but during trial (see: Wikipedia)

Related pages on ESP Wiki

External links

References