Beijing High Court recently made a ruling in a patent invalidation administrative litigation, vacating the lower court's ruling and affirming the Patent Reexamination Board's decision, which announced the patent concerned invalid. See Judgment: (2014) Gao Xing Zhong Zi No.1198. CCPIT requested for invalidation of the patent as attorneys of the petitioner and got the final success.
The case involved a utility model patent titled "Touch Pattern of Capacitive Touch Panel". The invalidation decision was made on the grounds of lacking novelty or inventive step. The issue at dispute concerns claim construction. The first instance court introduced extrinsic contents not described in the claims and specification to limit the claim scope when construing the claims. The High Court held that the way of interpretation by the lower court should be corrected. The High Court's judgment is significant in guiding claim construction for future invalidation cases.
The success enhanced the client's position in the co-pending infringement litigation, and also in the related litigations in U.S. This case also has a great influence on the touch screen and smart phone industry in view of the dominating positions of the parties involved.
Originally published August 2015The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
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