Section 284 of the Patent Act provides that, upon finding infringement, “the court shall award the claimant damages adequate to compensate for the infringement, but in no event less than a reasonable royalty for the use made of the invention by the infringer.” Historically, recovery has been limited to damages within the United States. More recently, however, the scope of exposure for damages is testing traditional concepts and allowing patent owners to recover damages on worldwide sales that infringe U.S. patents.
Courts presume that federal statutes apply only within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States. This principle, commonly called the presumption against extraterritoriality, “rests on the commonsense notion that Congress generally legislates with domestic concerns in mind.” WesternGeco v. ION Geophysical, 138 S. Ct. 2129, 2136 (2018) (citations omitted). Doing so prevents “unintended clashes between our laws and those of other nations which could result in international discord.” Id. The Federal Circuit has adhered to this understanding, recently confirming that a plaintiff is not “entitled to compensatory damages for injury caused by infringing activity that occurred outside the territory of the United States.” Power Integrations v. Fairchild Semiconductor Int’l, 711 F.3d 1348, 1371 (Fed. Cir. 2013).
