Article
Latent Traps in Patent Exhaustion after Quanta
Germeshausen Newsletter
(2010)
Abstract
The Supreme Court’s recent opinion in Quanta Computer, Inc. v. LG Electronics, Inc. notably affirmed the exhaustibility of method patents. Yet the Quanta decision also introduces other, more subtle elements into patent exhaustion jurisprudence. First, the Court conflates two formerly independent preconditions of patent exhaustion, namely (1) the utility of the unfinished article and (2) the purpose of the exhausting sale. Second, the Court purports to relax the standard of alternate uses for the patented article, from merely possible alternate uses to reasonable ones. These changes have the potential to shift the balance of power in patent litigation significantly toward alleged infringers.
Keywords
- patents,
- exhaustion,
- litigation,
- Quanta,
- Supreme Court
Disciplines
Publication Date
2010
Citation Information
Saurabh Vishnubhakat. "Latent Traps in Patent Exhaustion after Quanta" Germeshausen Newsletter Vol. 1 (2010) Available at: http://works.bepress.com/saurabh_vishnubhakat/100/