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  • PTAB · Nov 15, 2022 · IPR2022-01173 · APJ Jeffrey N Fredman · IPR · Institution

    The Board denied institution because AliveCor disclaimed all challenged claims, claims 1–13.

    RulingsInstitution decision
    • Adverse judgmentAdverse judgmentDenied

      “37 C.F.R. § 1.321(a); see also Vectra, 162 F.3d at 1382 (holding that a § 253 disclaimer is immediately “recorded” on the date that the Office receives a disclaimer meeting requirements of 37 C.F.R. § 1.321(a) and that no further action is required in the Office). “No inter partes review will be instituted based on disclaimed claims.” 37 C.F.R. § 42.107(e); see also General Electric Co. v. United Techs. Corp., IPR2017-00491, Paper 9 at 3 (PTAB July 6, 2017) (precedential). is, the USPTO Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) database containing the image file wrappers and other information for the ’175 patent), we conclude that a disclaimer of claims 1–13 of the ’175 patent under 35 U.S.C. § 253(a) has been recorded in the Office as of October 11, 2022. Exhibit 2001, a copy of the filed disclaimer, is signed by Patent Owner’s attorney of record, Abhijit P. Adisesh. Ex. 2001, 1. Exhibit 2001 also identifies the ’175 patent; identifies that all of the claims at issue in the petitions (claims 1–13) are disclaimed; and states that AliveCor, Inc. is the owner of 100% of the instant patent by virtue of an assignment recorded at Reel 049503 and Frame 0327. Id. The image file wrapper in PAIR for the ’175 patent includes a fee worksheet and receipt for the requisite fee filed with the disclaimer on October 11, 2022. Because Patent Owner filed a statutory disclaimer in compliance with 35 U.S.C. § 253(a) and 37 C.F.R. § 1.321(a) disclaiming all the claims of the ’175 patent, no inter partes review is instituted in this proceeding.” slip op. at 3

    Discretionary denial
    Patents in suitUS 11,103,175
  • PTAB · Nov 2, 2022 · IPR2022-00755 · APJ John D Hamann · IPR · Institution

    The Board denied institution under § 314(a), finding the Fintiv factors favored denial and that the challenges to claims 14–19 were not compelling.

    RulingsInstitution decision
    • PTAB / AIA Trials › Discretionary denial › Fintiv (parallel litigation)Institution denied fintivDenied

      “Accordingly, this factor weighs heavily in favor of exercising our discretion to deny the Petition.” slip op. at 10

    • PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)Institution denied meritsInstitution denied

      “In sum, we find that Petitioner’s arguments, and Dr. Fuja’s cited testimony, are not compelling. Accordingly, Petitioner’s showing as to independent claim 14 is less than a “compelling, meritorious challenge[].” In addition, claims 15–19 depend from claim 14, and Petitioner’s arguments for these dependent claims do not cure the above deficiencies for independent claim 14. Pet. 26– 31. Likewise, Petitioner’s arguments for dependent claims 15 and 18 for the remaining ground (Kotecha combined with R1-081126) do not cure the above deficiencies for independent claim 14. Pet. 31–34. Thus, Petitioner’s showing of unpatentability is not compelling for any of the challenged claims for any of the asserted grounds. VII. CONCLUSION For the foregoing reasons, we exercise our discretion to deny the Petition. VIII. ORDER In consideration of the foregoing, it is hereby: ORDERED that the Petition is denied and no trial is instituted.” slip op. at 25

    • Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successNot shown unpatentableMotivation not foundNot reached

      “We find that Petitioner’s arguments are not compelling. First, we have doubts as to whether Kotecha (i) teaches a scheme “which utilizes a CQI trigger, a particular MCS value, and other fields present in the uplink grant” or (ii) “encourages [one of ordinary skill in the art] to use fields in addition to the MCS field.” Pet. 23–24. Rather, it appears that Kotecha teaches in its discussion regarding using a CQI trigger and a particular MCS value that “different fields, other than the MCS field, may be reused according to [Kotecha’s] disclosure to clearly signal whether an uplink grant is for only CQI or CQI and data.” See Ex. 1004, 4:23–43 (emphasis added). Hence, Kotecha teaches using other fields in lieu of—not in addition to—the MCS field. Id. Moreover, Kotecha’s teachings regarding using “one or more fields” to indicate only CQI or CQI and data identify the CQI request and MCS fields, as examples, without identifying additional fields, nor requiring the use of these fields. See id. at 7:19–22, 8:15–20, Fig. 6. Thus, these teachings also do not provide compelling support for Petitioner’s arguments that Kotecha encourages adding a third field to the CQI request and MCS fields combination. Id. Second, we find uncompelling Petitioner’s argument that one of ordinary skill in the art “would have been motivated to try using the . . . (RB) assignment field as a further indication of whether to multiplex CQI with data,” which “is one of only seven other possible fields for [one of ordinary skill in the art] to consider.” Pet. 25. This argument is premised on Kotecha encouraging using a third field—and only a third field—in addition to the CQI request and MCS fields, which, as we discuss above, Kotecha does not. Rather, choosing any three, for example, of the nine fields in the uplink grant would yield 84 possible combinations. See Ex. 1004, 1:25–34 (listing nine fields); Ex. 1003 ¶ 78 (testifying that “Kotecha identifies nine fields in the uplink grant”). Yet more combinations are possible if combinations having other numbers of fields are employed. “[T]he breadth of these choices and the numerous combinations indicate that these disclosures would not have rendered the claimed invention obvious to try.” Leo Pharm. Prod., Ltd. v. Rea, 726 F.3d 1346, 1356 (Fed. Cir. 2013) (citing Rolls–Royce PLC v. United Techs. Corp., 603 F.3d 1325, 1339 (Fed. Cir. 2010)). Nor does Petitioner cite to any guidance provided in Kotecha about which combinations of fields would likely be successful in arguing that the claimed three field combination would have been obvious to try. See In re Kubin, 561 F.3d 1351, 1359 (Fed. Cir. 2009) (“[W]here a defendant merely throws metaphorical darts at a board filled with combinatorial prior art possibilities, courts should not succumb to hindsight claims of obviousness.”).” slip op. at 22

    • Expert testimonyPetitioner expert discountedDecided for patent owner

      “Third, we do not find compelling Dr. Fuja’s cited testimony, which in our view, and taken as a whole, risks using impermissible hindsight to reconstruct the invention of claim 14. See Metalcraft of Mayville, Inc. v. The Toro Co., 848 F.3d 1358, 1367 (Fed. Cir. 2017) (“[W]e cannot allow hindsight bias to be the thread that stitches together prior art patches into something that is the claimed invention.”); In re Fritch, 972 F.2d 1260, 1266 (Fed. Cir. 1992) (“It is impermissible to use the claimed invention as an instruction manual or ‘template’ to piece together the teachings of the prior art so that the claimed invention is rendered obvious.” (citation omitted)). For example, the testimony appears to be predicated incorrectly on Kotecha teaching using a third field (i.e., the resource assignment field) in addition to the CQI request and MCS fields, and the testimony instead tracks the claimed three field combination of claim 14. Ex. 1003 ¶¶ 77–79. Moreover, Dr. Fuja opines that “it would have been obvious for [one of ordinary skill in the art] to use the resource assignment field in the uplink grant in addition to the CQI request bit and the MCS field because doing so provides additional flexibility and greater efficiency at no additional cost.” Ex. 1003 ¶ 79. We find this testimony to be conclusory as there is no factual support underlying Dr. Fuja’s opinion that one of ordinary skill in the art would have found such to be obvious. Id. ¶¶ 77–83. Also, claim 14 recites more than just reusing the resource assignment field to indicate whether data should be multiplexed with the CQI report. Ex. 1001, 24:7–14. Rather, claim 14 also recites evaluating whether the indicated number of resource blocks “is smaller than or equal to a determined number of resource blocks.” Id. Kotecha does not teach this, nor does Dr. Fuja address it in a compelling way. See Ex. 1003 ¶¶ 77–83.” slip op. at 23

    Claim construction§ 103 obviousnessDiscretionary denialcites Phillips · Graham
    Patents in suitUS 8,385,239
  • PTAB · Nov 2, 2022 · IPR2022-00725 · APJ David C Mckone · IPR · Institution

    The Board denied institution for claims 1–6 and 11–16 under § 314(a), finding the Fintiv factors favored denial and the challenges were not compelling.

    RulingsInstitution decision
    • PTAB / AIA Trials › Discretionary denial › Fintiv (parallel litigation)Denied

      “v. Avid Tech., Inc., 815 F.3d 1356, 1367 (Fed. Cir. 2016) (“[T]he PTO is permitted, but never compelled, to institute an IPR proceeding.”); 35 U.S.C. § 314(a). The Board has held that the advanced state of a parallel district court action is a factor that may weigh in favor of denying a petition under § 314(a). See NHK Spring Co. v. Intri-Plex Techs., Inc., IPR2018-00752, Paper 8 at 20 (PTAB Sept. 12, 2018) (precedential); Patent Trial and Appeal Board, Consolidated Trial Practice Guide, 58 & n.2 (Nov. 2019) (“Trial Practice Guide”)2. We consider the following factors to assess “whether efficiency, fairness, and the merits support the exercise of authority to deny institution in view of an earlier trial date in the parallel proceeding”: 1. whether the court granted a stay or evidence exists that one may be granted if a proceeding is instituted; 1 The Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (“AIA”), Pub. L. No. 112-29, 125 Stat. 284, 287–88 (2011), amended 35 U.S.C. § 103. Because the ’000 patent claims a filing date before March 16, 2013, the effective date of the relevant amendment, the pre-AIA version of § 103 applies. 2 Available at https://www.uspto.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ tpgnov.pdf. 2. proximity of the court’s trial date to the Board’s projected statutory deadline for a final written decision; 3. investment in the parallel proceeding by the court and the parties; 4. overlap between issues raised in the petition and in the parallel proceeding; 5. whether the petitioner and the defendant in the parallel proceeding are the same party; and 6. other circumstances that impact the Board’s exercise of discretion, including the merits. Apple Inc. v. Fintiv, Inc., IPR2020-00019, Paper 11 at 5–6 (PTAB Mar. 20, 2020) (precedential) (“Fintiv”). In evaluating these factors, we “take[] a holistic view of whether efficiency and integrity of the system are best served by denying or instituting review.” Id. at 6.” slip op. at 5

    • PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)Institution denied fintivInstitution denied

      “implemented by a base station. As Petitioner points out, Classon describes a multicarrier communications system that includes a “base site” and “receiving platforms” (also referred to as “transmission targets”), which we find are a base station and mobile stations. Pet. 19–20 (citing Ex. 1005, code (57), ¶¶ 23, 27, 28, 31, Fig. 4). The parties dispute whether Classon (in light of the background knowledge of a skilled artisan or, in light of TR 25.858) teaches transmitting control information indicating whether a mobile station is to transmit one channel quality indicator (CQI) for each subcarrier block within a communication frequency band or one CQI for all subcarrier blocks within the communication frequency band instead of multiple CQIs for multiple subcarrier blocks within the communication frequency band, as recited in claim 1 (and similarly recited in claim 11). For the reasons given below, the case Petitioner advances is less than compelling.” slip op. at 21

    • Obviousness (§103) › Motivation to combine / reasonable expectation of successNot reached

      “Patent Owner’s argument has merit. Paragraphs 37–40 of Classon describe the base station determining what mode to use for communication based on the information (including CQI information) sent by the mobile units. Paragraph 41 states that “such channel quality information will preferably already be available to the base site” but that, if it is not available, “the base site can transmit 73 a message to the relevant transmission target or targets and request a reply that includes the relevant channel quality information.” Also, paragraph 41 states that “[w]ays in which such information can be provided to the base site will be described below in more detail.” This appears to be a reference to Classon’s description of the mobile stations, not the base station, determining that they are of “type 1” or “type 2” and sending channel quality information to the base station based on that determination, after which the base station determines whether to use the first mode or second mode in communications. Ex. 1005 ¶¶ 45–51. Thus, rather than supporting Petitioner’s position, the context around paragraph 41 appears in friction with that position. Petitioner does not explain how the base station determines a transmission mode (and thus a requested amount of CQI information) without first having that information from the mobile stations. Instead, it is reasonable to read paragraph 41 as requesting of the mobile stations information that the mobile stations deem appropriate; in other words, that the mobile stations determine whether to send a CQI value for each subcarrier or information on average channel quality. Even if it is sufficient to go forward on a theory that Classon implicitly teaches the claimed control message, the evidence Petitioner advances for this position is not compelling.” slip op. at 23

    • PTAB / AIA Trials › Discretionary denial › §325(d) same art / argumentsNot reached

      “III. DISCRETIONARY DENIAL UNDER 35 U.S.C. § 325(D) Petitioner argues that we should not deny the Petition under 35 U.S.C. § 325(d). Pet. 56. Patent Owner argues that we should. Prelim. Resp. 23– 28. Because we deny the Petition for other reasons, we do not reach whether we should exercise our discretion to deny the Petition under § 325(d).” slip op. at 29

    Claim construction§ 103 obviousnessDiscretionary denialcites Phillips · Graham
    Patents in suitUS 9,137,000
  • PTAB · Nov 1, 2022 · IPR2022-00854 · APJ Jeffrey W Abraham · IPR · Institution

    The Board denied institution because the Patent Owner disclaimed all challenged claims in compliance with the statutory requirements.

    RulingsInstitution decision
    • Adverse judgmentAdverse judgmentOther

      “A disclaimer under 35 U.S.C. § 253(a) is “considered as part of the original patent” as of the date on which it is “recorded” in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“Office”). 35 U.S.C. § 253(a). For a disclaimer to be “recorded” in the Office, the document filed by the patent owner must: (1) Be signed by the patentee, or an attorney or agent of record; (2) Identify the patent and complete claim or claims, or term being disclaimed. A disclaimer which is not a disclaimer of a complete claim or claims, or term will be refused recordation;” slip op. at 7

    Discretionary denial
    Patents in suitUS 8,035,112
  • PTAB · Nov 1, 2022 · IPR2022-00724 · APJ Jeffrey W Abraham · IPR · Institution

    The Board denied institution because Patent Owner disclaimed all challenged claims 2–5, 8, 9, and 13–16 in compliance with the statutory requirements.

    RulingsInstitution decision
    • Adverse judgmentAdverse judgmentDenied

      “Here, Patent Owner filed a statutory disclaimer of claims 1–16 of the ’112 patent, which includes the challenged claims. Prelim. Resp. 1; Ex. 2001. Based on our review of Exhibit 2001 and Office public records, we conclude that a disclaimer of claims 1–16 of the ’112 patent under 35 U.S.C. § 253(a) was filed with the Office as of September 29, 2021. Based on the information in the public record, we find that the disclaimer complies with the above-listed requirements of 37 C.F.R. § 1.321(a). Because all challenged claims have been disclaimed under 35 U.S.C. § 253(a), in compliance with 37 C.F.R. § 1.321(a), no inter partes review is instituted in this proceeding. 37 C.F.R. § 42.107(e); General Electric Co. v. United Techs. Corp., IPR2017-00491, Paper 9 (PTAB July 6, 2017) (precedential) (declining to institute inter partes review when all challenged claims were disclaimed under 35 U.S.C. § 253(a)). Patent Owner acknowledges that we should deny institution on this threshold procedural ground. Prelim. Resp. 1.” slip op. at 7

    Discretionary denial
    Patents in suitUS 8,035,112
  • PTAB · Oct 24, 2022 · IPR2022-00830 · APJ Frances L Ippolito · IPR · Institution

    The Board denied institution of IPR on claims 1–14 and 16–21 because the Patent Owner effectively disclaimed all challenged claims.

    RulingsInstitution decision
    • Adverse judgmentAdverse judgmentDenied

      “conclude a disclaimer of claims 1–14 and 16–21 of the ’632 Patent, under 35 U.S.C. § 253(a) has been recorded in the Office as of July 28, 2022. Ex. 2002. Vectra Fitness, Inc., 162 F.3d at 1382. The record shows that a completed Form PTO/SB/43 (“DISCLAIMER IN PATENT UNDER 37 CFR 1.321(a)”) was filed and received by the Office on that date. See Ex. 2002. The disclaimer form was signed by Lance D’Armico, Secretary for Patent Owner Times Fiber Communications, Inc. See Ex. 2002, 3; see also Ex. 2001 (recorded assignment of the challenged patent from Amphenol Corporation to Times Fiber Communications, Inc., executed on December 23, 2021). The form identifies Patent Owner as having a “100% Ownership Interest” in the ’632 Patent, and identifies claims 1–14 and 16– 21 as being disclaimed. See Ex. 2002, 3. The evidence also reflects payment of the required fee. See id. at 1, 4–5. We determine Patent Owner has met the requirements for an effective disclaimer under 35 U.S.C. § 253 and 37 C.F.R. § 1.321(a). In view of this disclaimer, and as consistent with 37 C.F.R. § 42.107(e) and the Board’s precedential General Electric decision, we determine a denial of institution is sufficient to dispose of this case. See Gen. Elec. Co., IPR2017-00491, Paper 9. Thus, we decline to institute an inter partes review.” slip op. at 4

    Discretionary denial
    Patents in suitUS 10,913,632
  • PTAB · Aug 25, 2022 · PGR2022-00005 · APJ Ken B Barrett · PGR · Rehearing

    The Board denied NXP’s rehearing request, leaving in place the denial of PGR institution on claims 1–20 based on its holistic Fintiv analysis.

    RulingsRehearing decision
    • RehearingRehearing, deniedDenied

      “decision should be modified. 37 C.F.R. § 42.71(d). “The request must specifically identify all matters the party believes the Board misapprehended or overlooked, and the place where each matter was previously addressed in a motion, an opposition, or a reply.” Id. When rehearing a decision on a petition, we review the decision for an abuse of discretion. 37 C.F.R. § 42.71(c). “An abuse of discretion may be indicated if a decision is based on an erroneous interpretation of law, if a factual finding is not supported by substantial evidence, or if the decision represents an unreasonable judgment in weighing relevant factors.” Huawei Device Co., Ltd., v. Optis Cellular Tech., LLC, IPR2018-00816, Paper 19, 3 (PTAB Jan. 8, 2019) (precedential) (citations omitted). Further, “[a]bsent a showing of ‘good cause’ . . . , new evidence will not be admitted” in connection with a request for rehearing. Patent Trial and Appeal Board Consolidated Trial Practice Guide 90 (Nov. 2019), https://www.uspto.gov/sites/default/files/documents/tpgnov.pdf (citing Huawei Device Co., IPR2018-00816, Paper 19 at 4). Thus, a request for rehearing is not generally an opportunity to present new arguments or evidence.” slip op. at 3

    • PTAB / AIA Trials › Other PTAB motions (exclude, strike, seal, additional discovery, rehearing)Denied

      “with the Request. “Ideally, a party seeking to admit new evidence with a rehearing request would request a conference call with the Board prior to filing such a request so that it could argue ‘good cause’ exists for admitting the new evidence. Alternatively, a party may argue ‘good cause’ exists in the rehearing request itself.” Huawei Device Co., IPR2018-00816, Paper 19 at 4; see also Consolidated Trial Practice Guide at 90 (quoting the same). Petitioner did not request a conference call prior to filing the Request to argue that good cause exists and does not present arguments in the Request regarding good cause. Accordingly, we find that Petitioner has not met its burden of showing that good cause exists to justify consideration of those exhibits to evaluate whether we erred by overlooking or misapprehending anything in the Decision. B. We Did Not Misapprehend the Significance of the Facts Pertaining to” slip op. at 4

    • PTAB / AIA Trials › Discretionary denial › Fintiv (parallel litigation)Decided for patent owner

      “argument, we stated that, “[b]ecause the currently scheduled trial in the parallel proceeding is scheduled to begin over two months before our deadline to reach a final decision, this factor weighs somewhat in favor of discretionary denial.” Dec. 9. After discussing all of the Fintiv factors and after “consider[ing] ‘a holistic view of whether efficiency and integrity of the system are best served by denying or instituting review,’” we exercised discretion to deny institution of a post-grant review. Id. at 12–13 (quoting Fintiv, Paper 11 at 6).” slip op. at 6

    Discretionary denial
    Patents in suitUS 10,929,734
  • PTAB · Aug 9, 2022 · IPR2022-00530 · APJ Terrence W Mcmillin · IPR · Institution

    The Board denied institution for claims 1–3, 7–12, and 16–21 under § 314(a), finding denial best served efficiency after the district court held the claims invalid.

    RulingsInstitution decision
    • PTAB / AIA Trials › Discretionary denial › Fintiv (parallel litigation)Institution denied fintivInstitution denied

      “First, we believe that the Fintiv analysis and factors are a poor fit to the circumstances of this proceeding.10 The Fintiv factors are “related to a parallel, co-pending proceeding” in a district court involving the same patent challenged before the Board. See Fintiv 5 (Heading B) (capitalization omitted). Here, the District Court found the challenged patent to be invalid on a basis that we cannot consider—subject matter eligibility under 35 U.S.C. § 101. See 35 U.S.C. § 311(b) (“A petitioner in an inter partes review may request to cancel as unpatentable 1 or more claims of a patent only on a ground that could be raised under section 102 or 103 and only on the basis of prior art consisting of patents or printed publications.”). There is no parallel consideration by a district court of the invalidity of the challenged claims of the ’602 patent under 35 U.S.C. §§102 or 103. Second, even if we consider the Fintiv factors, we disagree with Petitioner and determine that, under the circumstances presented here, these factors support our denying institution. The Fintiv factors and a Fintiv analysis emphasizes, inter alia, concerns of efficiency. Fintiv 5, 6, 15, 16. As discussed below, we believe that efficiency as shown by analysis of the Fintiv factors strongly favors denial of institution. We consider each of the Fintiv factors. We then weigh the factors together and decide, in this case, to exercise our discretion to deny institution based on the particular circumstances presented in this case.” slip op. at 11

    Discretionary denial
    Patents in suitUS 9,479,602
  • PTAB · Jul 15, 2022 · PGR2021-00030 · APJ Sheridan K Snedden · PGR · Rehearing

    Patent Owner’s rehearing request was granted, and institution was denied for all challenged claims based on changed circumstances in the parallel district court proceeding under Fintiv.

    RulingsRehearing decision
    • RehearingRehearing, grantedGranted

      “Having considered the parties’ positions and evidence of record, summarized above, we agree with Patent Owner that a rehearing of our prior institution decision is appropriate due to the changed circumstances of: (1) the statutory disclaimer of claims 6–8 of the ’039 patent, (2) Patent Owner’s request for adverse judgment of related proceeding PGR2021-00042, and (3) the additional investment in the parallel proceeding by the district court and the parties, including the completion of a jury trial that resulted in a jury verdict not finding invalidity of the challenged claims. We further agree with Patent Owner that “[c]ontinuing with this proceeding would result in duplicative efforts and potentially conflicting results between the district court and the Board.” Reh’g Req. 9. It is the combination of these changed circumstances, rather than any one of them individually, that compels the result we reach.” slip op. at 7

    • PTAB / AIA Trials › Discretionary denial › Fintiv (parallel litigation)Institution denied fintivInstitution denied

      “In considering the parties’ positions and the evidence of record, we note that we have been instructed not to exercise discretion to deny a petition when “the information presented at the institution stage presents a compelling unpatentability challenge.” Guidance Memo 4–5. We previously described “Petitioner’s argument that the claims lack enablement” as presenting “strong merits.” Paper 17, 3. Despite that determination, we believe the record as it stands currently does not “present[] a compelling unpatentability challenge” on the lack-of-enablement issue. Guidance Memo 4–5. The district court already has substantially completed its review of the enablement issue, and a jury has determined that the claims do not lack enablement. Given this new information, we cannot conclude that Petitioner’s enablement case is compelling.” slip op. at 6

    • Adverse judgmentOther
    Discretionary denial
    Patents in suitUS 10,808,039
  • PTAB · Jun 10, 2022 · IPR2022-00111 · APJ Jason M Repko · IPR · Institution

    The Board denied institution because the patent was likely subject to the AIA’s nine-month IPR waiting period, and the petition was filed less than six months after grant.

    RulingsInstitution decision
    • PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)Institution denied time barInstitution denied

      “A petition for inter partes review shall be filed after the later of either—(1) the date that is 9 months after the grant of a patent; or (2) if a post-grant review is instituted under chapter 32, the date of the termination of such post-grant review.” 35 U.S.C. § 311(c). Similarly, our rules require that, for patents described in section 3(n)(1) of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act, Pub. L. No. 112–29, 125 Stat. 284 (Sept. 16, 2011) (“AIA”), a petition for inter partes review must be filed no earlier than nine months after the date of the grant of the patent. 37 C.F.R. § 42.102(a)(1). Patents subject to the AIA first-inventor-to file provisions are those that issue from applications “that contain or contained at any time— (A) a claim to a claimed invention that has an effective filing date as defined in section 100(i) of title 35, United States Code, that is on or after [March 16, 2013]; or (B) a specific reference under section 120, 121, or 365(c) of title 35, United States Code, to any patent or application that contains or contained at any time such a claim. AIA § 3(n)(1). slip op. at 6

    Discretionary denial
    Patents in suitUS 11,017,020
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