A recent Federal Circuit action makes final a 2014 decision by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB), reported Law360. The action related to assertions by Hewlett Packard Co. that scanner patent infringement claims made by well-known patent enforcement entity MPHJ Technology Investments LLC were invalid. Law360 reported that “one member of Congress once described MPHJ as ‘a quintessential patent troll’” and that “its tactics have been the subject of several congressional hearings, during which lawmakers and other officials have likened its patent licensing efforts to ‘garden variety extortion.’”
There were 15 patent claims challenged by HP. The PTAB agreed with HP’s claims on 14 of the 15, but allowed the one remaining patent claim to stand. The Federal Circuit shot down HP’s bid to invalidate the remaining claim.
The full article is available through the Law360 website (subscription required).