Before Dyk, Bryson, and Reyna.  Appeal from PTAB, remanded from the Federal Circuit, en banc.

Summary: Time-bar does not apply to IPR petitioner through privity with a district court defendant because the evidence did not show (1) that the petitioner had the right to control the district court litigation nor (2) that the district court defendants were real parties in interest in the IPR proceeding.

Before Newman, Lourie, and Reyna.  Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida.

Summary: Collateral estoppel does not apply to a prior decision of no invalidity under § 101, where the issue was not actually litigated.

Before Dyk, O’Malley, and Wallach.  Appeal from the PTAB.

Summary: A priority claim must be explicitly stated in the patent and cannot be incorporated by reference from an earlier patent.  

Before Prost, Reyna, and Wallach. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas.

Summary: Pre-reexamination conduct cannot be a basis for equitable estoppel if the asserted claims were substantively amended and narrowed during reexamination. 

Early protection of intellectual property is a critical component in any business’s efforts to secure a competitive advantage in the marketplace.  In the cannabis space, efforts to secure IP rights may be influenced by conflicting federal and state regulations.

Before Reyna, Taranto, and Hughes. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Central District of California

Summary: An individual claiming sole inventorship of a patent has standing under 35 U.S.C. § 256 to establish ownership of the patent, unless he has entered into a contract in which he assigns, or promises to assign, the rights to the patent, or he was “hired-to-invent” such that his employer is entitled to claim his inventive work.

Before Lourie, O’Malley, and Wallach. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas

Summary: When a case is dismissed with prejudice for lack of standing, the defendant is the prevailing party for purposes of fee-shifting under 35 U.S.C. § 285.

Before Moore, Linn, and Chen.  Appeal from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board.

Summary: A party seeking to swear behind prior art using an inventor’s testimony must proffer corroborating evidence that does not depend solely on the inventor’s testimony itself.

Before Moore, Mayer, and Stoll.  Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey.

Summary: Plain claim language will not be narrowed based on a patent’s specification unless the patentee clearly and explicitly disclaims claim scope.

Before Prost, Lourie and Hughes. Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Delaware.

Summary:  When another patent for a drug issues after an ANDA is filed, there can still be jurisdiction for an infringement lawsuit and a finding of infringement of that patent even when the ANDA is not amended until after the lawsuit is filed.