Maria Santos

Correspondent

Maria Santos

White House correspondent, covers patent, trade and regulatory news

Business & Regulatory patent

Decisions covered by Maria Santos

639 decisions
Mar 9 2026
Fed. Cir. 20-1173, 20-1174 Panel Decision

IMPLICIT, LLC v. SONOS, INC., JOHN A. SQUIRES, UNDER SECRETARY OF COMMERCE FOR INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND DIRECTOR OF THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE

The Federal Circuit affirmed the Patent Trial and Appeal Board's decision that certificates of correction issued after final written decisions in inter partes review proceedings do not retroactively invalidate those decisions. The court held that the patent owner forfeited the right to rely on the corrected inventorship because it failed to raise the argument in a timely manner during the initial proceedings.

Civil Forfeiture / Penalty Intellectual Property
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Mar 9 2026
4th Cir. 25-1454 Panel Decision

CIN DALE 3; JOHN WRIGHT, 1&2; MILLER; BAK; BALL, 1&2; HUGH D. DALE, JR v. PEOPLES BANK CORP.; KIM LIGHTHALL; JOHN OR JANE DOE BANK EMPLOYEES 1-5

The Fourth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a suit against a bank for seizing funds to satisfy a Texas judgment, holding that banks perform a ministerial function when complying with court enforcement writs. The court ruled that the bank acted with legal right under West Virginia law and that the judgment debtors must challenge the underlying judgment rather than sue the bank.

Bankruptcy Civil
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Mar 9 2026
3rd Cir. 25-1689 Panel Decision

MARK R. CUKER; GERALD J. WILLIAMS v. ESTHER E. BEREZOFSKY

The Third Circuit affirmed a district court order confirming an arbitration award resolving a law firm dissolution dispute. The court rejected the appellant's claims that the arbitrators manifestly disregarded the law or committed misconduct regarding fee distributions and jurisdictional limits.

Civil Contract
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Mar 6 2026
3rd Cir. 2:22-cv-02941 Panel Decision

Quinton Burns v. SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, Inc.

The Third Circuit affirmed the District Court's denial of sanctions against SeaWorld, holding that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in refusing to impose penalties. The appellate court emphasized that decisions regarding litigation conduct sanctions are generally entrusted to the sound judgment of the trial court.

Civil Intellectual Property
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Mar 6 2026
Fed. Cir. 25-1672 Panel Decision

In re HBN SHOE, LLC

The Federal Circuit affirmed the Patent Trial and Appeal Board's rejection of a patent application for a cleated athletic shoe as obvious under 35 U.S.C. § 103. The court held that the claimed design, which features a concave depression to facilitate foot movement during exercise, was an unpatentable combination of prior-art references.

Civil Intellectual Property
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Mar 6 2026
Fed. Cir. 24-2296 Panel Decision

EXAFER LTD v. MICROSOFT CORPORATION

The Federal Circuit reversed the district court's exclusion of a patent damages expert report, ruling that the lower court misapplied precedent regarding royalty bases. The court held that using unaccused virtual machines as a royalty base was permissible where a causal connection existed between the patented technology and the increased capacity of those machines.

Civil Intellectual Property Summary Judgment
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Mar 5 2026
Fed. Cir. 24-1944 Panel Decision

HOA T. JANICH v. DOUGLAS A. COLLINS, SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS 2024-1944

The Federal Circuit vacated the Veterans Court's decision and remanded the case because the lower court may have applied an incorrect legal standard regarding harmless error in a Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability claim. The appellate court held that the Veterans Court erred by assuming that a Board's identification of illustrative jobs is automatically harmless if the Board is not required to survey the actual job market.

Administrative / Agency Review Civil
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