Inequitable conduct claims can add upwards of a million dollars to patent litigation, and adverse rulings can tank legal careers and corporate profits. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit may finally be ready to consider whether the doctrine still works.
In November, the Federal Circuit is scheduled to hold an en banc hearing in Therasense Inc. v. Becton, Dickinson & Co. on whether to change the standards for proving inequitable conduct — when an applicant’s misstatements or omissions at a patent office invalidate a patent.
