Amazon Users’ Patent Win Stands After High Court Denies Review

The US Supreme Court declined a patent owner’s request to rein in the Federal Circuit’s alleged expansion of a doctrine preventing it from suing 80 Amazon.com Inc. customers for infringement.

The justices’ action aligns with the solicitor general’s recommendation to skip consideration of a US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit decision that bars PersonalWeb Technologies LLC from suing customers after it voluntarily dismissed an earlier case against the online retailer.

The appeals court relied on the Kessler doctrine, which comes from a 1907 Supreme Court case that blocks patent infringement action against a customer of a seller who ...