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Patent Subject Matter Eligibility

Federal Circuit
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In re Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University — Federal Circuit Holds Haplotype Phasing Mathematical Algorithm Is Patent Ineligible Under § 101

The Federal Circuit affirmed that Stanford’s patent claims directed to a computational method for haplotype phasing — determining which genetic variants are inherited together on each chromosome — were patent ineligible as abstract mathematical calculations implemented on generic computer hardware.

Federal Circuit
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cxLoyalty, Inc. v. Maritz Holdings Inc. — Federal Circuit Holds Loyalty Points Redemption System Is an Ineligible Abstract Idea

The Federal Circuit affirmed that a patent claiming a computerized system for redeeming credit card loyalty points for rewards is an abstract idea ineligible for patent protection, and also held that substitute claims proposed in covered business method review are subject to § 101 scrutiny.

Federal Circuit
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American Axle & Manufacturing v. Neapco Holdings — Federal Circuit Finds Driveshaft Tuning Method Directed to Natural Law

A divided Federal Circuit panel held that American Axle’s patent on a method for tuning a propshaft to reduce vibration was patent-ineligible as directed to the application of Hooke’s Law — drawing sharp dissents and a petition for rehearing that generated significant debate about the sc

Federal Circuit
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Packet Intelligence LLC v. NetScout Systems, Inc. — Federal Circuit Holds Deep Packet Inspection Patents Eligible, Reverses Pre-Suit Damages for Marking Failure

The Federal Circuit upheld the patent eligibility of network traffic monitoring patents under § 101, finding they recite a concrete technical solution to the problem of tracking multi-flow network conversations, but reversed pre-suit damages because the patent owner failed to comply with the patent

Federal Circuit
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Uniloc USA v. LG Electronics — Federal Circuit Holds Wireless Communication Patent Eligible as Technical Improvement Reducing Latency

The Federal Circuit reversed a district court’s dismissal and held that patent claims covering a technique for reducing transmission delays in wireless communication systems were directed to a patent-eligible improvement in computer functionality rather than an abstract idea.

Federal Circuit
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Illumina v. Ariosa Diagnostics — Federal Circuit Upholds Prenatal DNA Method Patent as Eligible, Distinguishing Mayo

The Federal Circuit reversed a district court ruling and held that method-of-preparation claims for enriching cell-free fetal DNA from maternal blood were patent eligible under § 101, because the claims went beyond merely observing a natural phenomenon and recited concrete preparation steps.

Federal Circuit
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American Axle v. Neapco Holdings — Federal Circuit Holds Driveshaft Manufacturing Method Claims Ineligible Under Hooke’s Law

The Federal Circuit held that patent claims directed to manufacturing driveshaft liners that “attenuate” vibrations were invalid under § 101 because they were simply an instruction to apply Hooke’s law — a natural law — without specifying how to do so, triggering a sharp dissent warning of § 101 ove

Federal Circuit
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Chamberlain Group v. Techtronic Industries — Federal Circuit Invalidates Wireless Garage Door Sensor Patents Under § 101

The Federal Circuit invalidated garage door opener patents covering a wireless sensor system for communicating door state, holding the claims were directed to the abstract idea of wirelessly communicating status information — an idea that cannot be its own inventive concept.

Federal Circuit
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Solutran, Inc. v. Elavon, Inc. — Federal Circuit Holds That Physical Check Processing Steps Do Not Save Abstract Business Method from § 101

The Federal Circuit reversed a district court and invalidated Solutran’s check-processing patent under § 101, holding that the presence of physical steps involving paper checks does not transform an abstract business method into patent-eligible subject matter.

Federal Circuit
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Cellspin Soft v. Fitbit — Federal Circuit Applies Berkheimer to Deny Motion to Dismiss on § 101 Grounds

The Federal Circuit reversed a district court’s dismissal of patent claims as ineligible under § 101, applying Berkheimer to hold that well-pleaded factual allegations about how the claimed invention was an unconventional advance must be accepted as true at the 12(b)(6) stage — limiting early

Federal Circuit
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Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc. v. Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. — Federal Circuit Holds Specific Dosing Method for Renally Impaired Patients Is Patent Eligible

The Federal Circuit reversed a district court’s ruling that Endo’s oxymorphone dosing patent was ineligible, holding that claims directed to a specific method of treating specific patients with specific dosages are not merely abstract natural laws.

Federal Circuit
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Natural Alternatives International, Inc. v. Creative Compounds, LLC — Federal Circuit Holds Beta-Alanine Supplement Patents Are Eligible as Unnatural-Quantity Treatment Claims

The Federal Circuit reversed a district court’s ruling that patents on using beta-alanine as a dietary supplement were invalid under § 101, holding that method of treatment claims covering use of a natural compound in non-naturally-occurring quantities to alter physiology are patent eligible.

Federal Circuit
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Athena Diagnostics v. Mayo Collaborative Services — Federal Circuit Invalidates MuSK Diagnostic Patent, Splits Sharply on § 101 Reform

The Federal Circuit invalidated a diagnostic patent for detecting autoantibodies linked to myasthenia gravis, then denied en banc rehearing in a rare decision accompanied by eight separate opinions, exposing the court’s deep division over § 101 and diagnostic patents.

Federal Circuit
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Trading Technologies v. IBG — Federal Circuit Finds Futures Trading Interface Patents Ineligible as Abstract Ideas

The Federal Circuit held that Trading Technologies’ patents on a graphical user interface for electronic futures trading were patent-ineligible abstract ideas under Alice — finding that displaying market data and allowing traders to place orders by clicking on a price ladder represented an abs

Federal Circuit
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Ancora Technologies, Inc. v. HTC America, Inc. — Federal Circuit Holds BIOS-Based Software License Verification Patent Is Eligible Under § 101

The Federal Circuit reversed a district court’s dismissal and held that a patent claiming a method of preventing computers from running unlicensed software by using the BIOS to store a license verification key is not an abstract idea—it claims a concrete improvement to computer security functionalit

Federal Circuit
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Interval Licensing v. AOL — Federal Circuit Invalidates “Attention Manager” Display Patent as Claiming a Desired Result Without a Technical Solution

The Federal Circuit held that a patent covering an “attention manager” that displays content in unused screen space is ineligible under § 101, because it claims a desired outcome — non-interfering display of two information sets — without specifying any technical means of achieving it.

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