U.S. International Trade Commission Issues Limited Exclusion Order for US Synthetic in Investigation Against Foreign Diamond Makers

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 23, 2025

WASHINGTON, DC—Finnegan secured a significant victory for client US Synthetic Corp. (USS), following the U.S. International Trade Commission’s issuance of a limited exclusion order (LEO) barring the importation of infringing polycrystalline diamond compacts (PDCs) manufactured by almost a dozen foreign respondents. The decision follows the Federal Circuit’s earlier reversal of the Commission’s Section 101 invalidity ruling, which reinstated US Synthetic’s patent rights and returned the case to the ITC for a determination on the remaining domestic industry issues.

On remand, the Commission found a violation of Section 337. It held that the respondents imported or sold infringing products covered by claims 1, 2, 11, 15, and 21 of the ’502 patent, affirmed that USS satisfied the economic prong of domestic industry, and issued a limited exclusion order barring infringing PDCs and articles containing the same—including PDC cutters, drill bits including PDC cutters, and PDC bearings and bearing elements—from entering the United States. The result protects USS’s patented technology and blocks infringing products from the U.S. market.

Finnegan partner Daniel Cooley represented USS. He said, “This decision brings the case full circle. With the Federal Circuit’s reversal of the §101 ruling and the Commission’s finding of a Section 337 violation on remand, US Synthetic now has enforceable relief that stops infringing products from entering the U.S.”

Contacts

Terra Liddell, Chief Marketing Officer
terra.liddell@finnegan.com

Angela Robinson, Director of Branding and Communications
angela.robinson@finnegan.com

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