Patent Office Urges Court Deference to Its Panel’s Precedent (1)

The Federal Circuit should accept how the Patent and Trademark Office’s top precedent-setting panel interprets patent law as long as it’s reasonable, the agency advised the court in a filing.

The Sept. 17 filing came amid appeals of patent validity disputes involving Facebook Inc. and Windy City Innovations LLC. Windy City is appealing the PTAB’s decision to let Facebook join prior proceedings in which it was already a party through a process known as joinder. Reversing the PTAB “would correct an abuse of discretion based on the application of incorrect law,” Windy City said.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for ...