In April and May, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued 20 total opinions in appeals from post-grant proceedings at the PTAB. In April, the Federal Circuit affirmed the PTAB on every issue in 7 cases (77.78%), including a precedential opinion in Sage Products, LLC v. Stewart (Case No. 23-1603). The court issued 2 opinions where every issue was reversed or vacated (22.22%), including a precedential opinion in Qualcomm Inc. v. Apple Inc. (No. 23-1208). The court did not issue any mixed outcomes, in which at least one issue was affirmed and at least one issue was not, or dismissals on substantive (e.g., non-settlement) grounds.
In May, a relatively favorable month for appellees compared to historical trends, the Federal Circuit affirmed the PTAB on every issue in 6 cases (54.55%). The court issued 2 opinions in which every issue was reversed or vacated (18.18%), including a precedential opinion in Sigray, Inc. v. Carl Zeiss X-Ray Microscopy, Inc. (No. 23-2211), and issued a mixed outcome in 2 appeals (18.18%). The court dismissed 1 appeal on substantive (e.g., non-settlement) grounds (9.09%) in a precedential opinion in Incyte Corp. v. Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, Inc. (No. 23-1300).
Through May 31, 2025, the Federal Circuit cumulatively decided 1,454 appeals from the PTAB in IPRs, CBMs, and PGRs. While the vast majority of these appeals came from IPR proceedings, the number of PGR appeals has slowly increased over time.
In IPR appeals, the Federal Circuit has cumulatively affirmed the PTAB on every issue in 1028 cases (74.98%) and reversed or vacated the PTAB on every issue in 166 cases (12.11%). A mixed outcome on appeal occurred in 137 cases (9.99%), and the court dismissed 40 IPR appeals (2.92%) without rendering a decision on the merits.
In PGR appeals, the Federal Circuit cumulatively affirmed the PTAB on every issue in 19 cases (65.52%), issued a mixed outcome in 3 cases (10.34%), reversed or vacated every issue in 6 cases (20.69%), and dismissed 1 (3.45%) appeal on substantive (e.g., non-settlement) grounds.
Taken together, in decisions for IPR, CBM, and PGR appeals, the Federal Circuit affirmed every issue in 1088 cases (74.83%), issued a mixed outcome in 144 cases (9.90%), reversed or vacated every issue in 177 cases (12.17%), and dismissed 45 cases (3.09%) on substantive grounds.
Of the 1,454 IPR, CBM, and PGR cumulative appeals that it has considered, the Federal Circuit issued Rule 36 affirmances in 609 cases (41.88%). The court issued written opinions, including affirmances, reversals, dismissals, and mixed decisions, in 845 cases (58.12%). The ratio of Rule 36 affirmances to written decisions has generally trended downward over time and further declined through April and May.
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