Federal Circuit Clarifies Scope of § 42.73(d)(3)(i) Estoppel in Interrelated USPTO Proceedings
Highlights
In Softview LLC v. Apple Inc., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit succinctly adopted Softview’s position that previously issued claims were not subject to the estoppel provisions under 37 C.F.R. § 42.73(d)(3)(i)
However, the court rejected Softbank’s effort to constrain the rule to common law collateral estoppel
The court also rejected an even broader argument that the USPTO’s rulemaking authority did not extend to substantive rules on estoppel
In Softview LLC v. Apple Inc., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit clarified the scope of estoppel under 37 C.F.R. § 42.73(d)(3)(i) concerning interrelated proceedings at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), vacating and remanding the lower decisions of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB).
Keep Up to Date in a Changing World
