Many defendants, companies trying to show they did
not infringe prefer a claim to be constructed broadly or narrowly. When hoping
for a narrow claim it is in order to build a good case showing non
infringement. When hoping for a broad case it is to build a case showing the
claim is invalid.
Dr. Bruce Saffron is suing J&J for infringing on
his patent which helps cover damaged tissue with a permeable sheet or spray.
The cover prevent large molecules from going through while allowing smaller one
to flow through. This is used in stints inserted for arteries all over the
body. Previously he won 50M from Boston Scientific. Now, he won a case for 500M
from J&J. However, four other circuit judges claimed that J&J is not
infringing on the patent. The four judges each ruled on different reasons. The
judges were all deciding based on the claim construction if the device needs a sheet
or not, and if which bond the claim includes. This shows that just because one
judge reads the claim one way does not mean that another judge will read it the
same way.
I wrote a post on claim construction as well. I did not know how important it was to patent cases. Great post, thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteToday I learned something new, good to know how important claim construction is. Everything is dependent on wording!
ReplyDelete