Firm Secures Federal Circuit Affirmance in Patent Trial

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed a lower court’s decision in favor of our clients, one of the world's leading centrifuge manufacturers, and an ethanol energy company, in connection with a multi-district litigation against 27 defendants. Patterson Belknap attorneys led the joint-defense effort in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, successfully invalidating the four asserted patents on summary judgment and as lead trial counsel in a 9-day bench trial on our inequitable conduct defense. On summary judgment, the district court declared the patents invalid based on the on-sale bar, anticipation, obviousness, failure to name the correct inventors, inadequate written description and lack of enablement. Following the bench trial, the district court declared the patents unenforceable based on the fraudulent conduct of the inventors and their attorneys.  On March 2, 2020, the Federal Circuit ruled in favor of our clients, affirming the district court’s determination that the patents-in-suit are unenforceable due to inequitable conduct.

To read the order in the case, click here.

To read press about the case, click here.