U.S. Supreme Court Denies Certiorari In Two Cases Challenging the Constitutionality of Inter Partes Review, PTAB Litigation Blog

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The U.S. Supreme Court has denied two of the three pending constitutional challenges to inter partes review (“IPR”). In MCM v. HP, No. 15-1330, patent owner MCM Portfolio LLC (“MCM”) challenged the constitutionality of IPRs on two grounds. First, MCM asserted that the IPR regime violates Article III of the U.S. Constitution because it assigns resolution of property rights to a non-Article III government agency. Second, MCM argued that the IPR regime violates the Seventh Amendment to the U.S. Constitution by depriving patent owners of their right to a jury to resolve questions of patent validity. In the decision below, the Federal Circuit rejected MCM’s constitutional challenges, holding that: (1) “Congress has the power to delegate disputes over public rights to non-Article III courts,” and that patents are public rights subject to such delegation; and (2) the right to a civil jury trial does not apply to administrative proceedings.

Read the full article at ptablitigationblog.com.