The U.S. Supreme Court's case Cuozzo Speed Technologies, LLC v. Lee is getting lots of attention. One indicator is the numerous amicus briefs filed in support of either party (see above link to the SCOTUS blog). Here are the legal issues being considered by the Court:
(1) Whether the court of appeals erred in holding that, in inter partes review (IPR) proceedings, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board may construe claims in an issued patent according to their broadest reasonable interpretation rather than their plain and ordinary meaning; and (2) whether the court of appeals erred in holding that, even if the Board exceeds its statutory authority in instituting an IPR proceeding, the Board’s decision whether to institute an IPR proceeding is judicially unreviewable.
The legal issues are technical, but how they are resolved will impact the value of US patents. If you don't want to "step into the jungle" of reading the conflicting amicus briefs, I recommend reading Professor Ronald Mann of Columbia Law's recent article on SCOTUS blog, which is concise, explains why we have the issues, and gives a balanced view of the controversy.
Updated April 26: Professor Mann has another interesting article on the SCOTUS blog: Argument analysis: Justices struggle to read “tea leaves” in Congress’s slipshod drafting of Patent Act provisions for inter partes review.
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