The decision lets stand a July panel ruling, which undid a $23 million award and royalty finding against dialysis supply manufacturer Fresenius USA Inc. after the PTO subsequently invalidated the patent at issue. The ruling drew strong criticism from four dissenters, including Circuit Judge Kathleen O’Malley.
“The panel majority’s decision in this case goes a long way toward rendering district courts meaningless in the resolution of patent infringement disputes,” O’Malley wrote. “It does so by creating a new regime wherein a district court’s final adjudication can be undone by later decisions of the Patent and Trademark Office.”
