Microsoft v. i4i – Oral Argument Date Set

< p> The Supreme Court recently scheduled oral arguments in Microsoft v. i4i to take place on Monday, April 18. We previously reported the filing of petitioner Microsoft’s brief as well as several amicus briefs; i4i’s brief and amicus briefs supporting i4i remain forthcoming.

 

In this case, the Supreme Court must decide the standard of review that courts should apply when reviewing the validity of issued patents. Federal Circuit precedent requires clear and convincing evidence of patent invalidity to declare an issued patent invalid. Based on this standard, the Federal Circuit affirmed a district court ruling in favor of the validity of i4i’s patent. Microsoft argues that this clear and convincing evidence standard is too onerous for determinations of patent validity, particularly where the challenge to validity involves prior art that was not before the USPTO during prosecution, as in this case. Instead, Microsoft would have the Supreme Court rule that a challenger need only show patent invalidity by a preponderance of the evidence.