scott eads
Mar 1, 2022

Fresh From the Bench: Latest Federal Circuit Court Case

CASE OF THE WEEK

Alarm.com Inc. v. Hirshfeld, Appeal No. 2020-2102 (Fed. Cir. Feb. 24, 2022)

In an appeal from the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, the Federal Circuit addressed whether the ex parte reexamination statutory scheme precluded judicial review of the PTO Director’s vacatur decisions premised on estoppel under the IPR statutory scheme. The Federal Circuit held that an APA challenge to the Director’s decisions was not precluded from judicial review, reasoning that the text, statutory scheme, and legislative history did not evince a fairly discernable intent to preclude judicial review of the Director’s vacatur decisions based on estoppel.

Read More

By:  Mario E. Delegato

Also This Week. . .

In re: Violation of the Revised Protocols for In-Person Arguments and Related Order, Appeal No. 2022-9000 (Fed. Cir. Feb. 25, 2022)

Although not a patent case, we include this as a cautionary note to those who practice in the Federal Circuit.  The Court addressed a disciplinary matter concerning two partners and a special counsel at a law firm who attempted to attend oral argument in violation of the Federal Circuit’s COVID protocols.  Those protocols limit oral argument to “arguing counsel and no more than one attendee whose presence is necessary to assist or supervise arguing counsel.”  Nobody else is permitted either in the building or in the courtroom.  Two of the individuals at issue sought leave from the rule.  Their motion was denied.  Nonetheless, they went to court that morning, hoping that the panel would let them attend.  Instead, they were ejected from the Court, and a disciplinary matter was commenced.  The Court’s opinion, marked precedential, was stern and found against all three attorneys.  Nonetheless, the disciplinary panel decided not to impose sanctions because “[r]espondents express earnest remorse, have not previously been accused of misconduct, and because this situation has not arisen before.”  However, the Court concluded “the bar is on notice that this court takes compliance with these protocols very seriously and that sanctions will likely be imposed if a future violation of the protocols takes place.”

The opinion can be found here.

By:  Nika Aldrich

Written by: Nika Aldrich and Scott Eads, Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt

Contributors: Mario E. Delegato