Federal Circuit Establishes Legal Standard for Demonstrating Standing in an Appeal from a Final Written Decision in Inter Partes Review, PTAB Litigation Blog

Visit the Jones Day PTAB Litigation Blog.

On January 9, 2017, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (“the Federal Circuit”) issued a decision in Phigenix, Inc. v. ImmunoGen, Inc., No. 2016-1544 (Fed. Cir. Jan. 9, 2017) establishing the legal standard for demonstrating standing in an appeal from a final written decision in IPR.  In Phigenix, the court disagreed with appellant, and petitioner below, Phigenix, Inc.’s (“Phigenix”) position that as a licensor of competing patents it had suffered injury in fact as a result of the PTAB’s determination that ImmunoGen, Inc.’s (“ImmunoGen”) patents were nonobvious.  In denying Phigenix’s appeal, the Federal Circuit confirmed that the procedural right granted by 35 U.S.C. § 141(c) does not free an appellant from the standing requirement of Article III.  In so doing, the court took the opportunity to elaborate on the legal standard, the burden of production, and the sort of evidence that will meet the burden.

Read the full article at ptablitigationblog.com.