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IP News

By Jeff Ginsberg and George Soussou
November 01, 2022

Federal Circuit: No Patent Term Adjustments When Claims Change

On Sept. 14, 2022, a Federal Circuit panel of Judges Newman, Linn, and Chen issued a unanimous decision in Sawstop Holding LLC v. Vidal, No. 2021-1537 (Fed. Cir. 2022). The Federal Circuit affirmed the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia's grant of summary judgment in favor of the United States Patent and Trademark Office's (PTO) decision to refuse to award an additional patent term adjustment for U.S. Patent No. 9,522,476 (the '476 patent) and U.S. Patent No. 9,927,796 (the '796 patent and collectively, the patents-at-issue) under 35 U.S.C. §154(b)(1).

The patents-at-issue are directed to "power saws with a safety feature that instantly stops the saw blade upon contact with flesh." Slip op. at 3. The Federal Circuit noted that "issuance of [the patents-at-issue] was delayed by appeals before allowance." Id. As such, SawStop Holdings LLC (Sawstop) sought a patent term adjustment under §154(b)(1)(C).

Under the provisions of §154(b)(1)(C), the PTO can grant a patent term adjustment if "the issue of an original patent is delayed due to … (iii) appellate review by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board or by a Federal court in a case in which the patent was issued under a decision in the review reversing an adverse determination of patentability." Id. at 2-3. In these circumstances, the patent term is extended one day for each day of the pendency of the proceeding, order, or review of the patent.

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