Utility Patent

District Courts, Utility Patent

Maquet v. Abiomed — Court Issues Three Pre-Trial Rulings on Blood Pump Patent, Preserves Written Description Challenge but Strikes Indefiniteness and Means-Plus-Function Arguments

In three pre-trial rulings, the District of Massachusetts denied summary judgment on Abiomed’s written description defense, eliminated its indefiniteness arguments, declined to kill the reverse doctrine of equivalents, and found waiver on a last-minute means-plus-function claim construction bid — setting the stage for trial on Maquet’s intravascular blood pump patent.

EU Courts, Utility Patent

Gilead Sciences v. Academy of Military Medical Sciences — UPC Revokes Chinese Military Institute’s Remdesivir COVID-19 Patent for Lack of Inventive Step

The UPC Central Division in Milan revoked the Academy of Military Medical Sciences’ European patent on the use of remdesivir to treat COVID-19, finding the claimed invention lacked inventive step because prior art published just ten days before the priority date already identified remdesivir as likely effective against the newly emerged Wuhan coronavirus.

International Trade Commission, Utility Patent

Centripetal Networks v. ITC — Federal Circuit Affirms No Section 337 Violation for Keysight’s Cybersecurity Products After Multiple Waiver Findings

The Federal Circuit affirmed the ITC’s finding that Keysight Technologies did not violate Section 337 by importing cybersecurity products, holding that Centripetal failed to prove its own products practiced the asserted patents and waived multiple infringement arguments on appeal.

District Courts, Utility Patent

Headwater Research v. Verizon — Judge Gilstrap Wipes Out $175M Patent Verdict With Implied Waiver

Judge Gilstrap finds that Headwater Research LLC — which knew of Verizon’s patent infringement in 2017 but waited six years to file suit in order to maximize its damages window — engaged in conduct so inconsistent with an intent to enforce its rights that equity bars enforcement entirely, wiping out a $175 million jury verdict. The court holds that implied waiver survives the Supreme Court’s SCA Hygiene decision, which abolished laches, because waiver goes to liability rather than damages.

Federal Circuit, Utility Patent

VLSI Technology v. Intel — Federal Circuit Revives Multi-Core Patent Infringement Claims, Reverses Summary Judgment on Extraterritoriality and Prosecution Disclaimer

The Federal Circuit reversed summary judgment of noninfringement of a multi-core processor patent, holding that a pretrial stipulation establishing a 70% U.S. nexus applied to infringement — not just damages — and that prosecution history did not clearly disclaim the broader scope of apparatus claims.

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