Federal Circuit Drills Down on Plain and Ordinary Meaning in Affirming PTAB’s Decision
March 21, 2022
Authored and Edited by Sneha Nyshadham; Christina Ji-Hye Yang; Esther H. Lim; Elizabeth D. Ferrill
In Apple Inc. v. MPH Technologies OY, Nos. 2021-1532, 2021-1533, 2021-1534 (Fed. Cir. Mar. 9, 2022), the Federal Circuit affirmed the PTAB’s final written decisions holding that several dependent claims are not obvious.
Apple filed inter partes reviews of three patents relating to a method for secure forwarding of a message from via an intermediate computer in a telecommunication network. The Board found several dependent claims nonobvious. Apple appealed.
The Federal Circuit affirmed, holding that Apple’s claim construction arguments are inconsistent with the term’s plain and ordinary meaning in view of the specification. For example, the use of passive voice in a claim does not overcome the claim’s plain language indicating direct sending between claimed components. Also, a plural term is presumed to refer to two or more absent a clear disclosure to the contrary. The Federal Circuit also held that the Board properly rejected conclusory expert testimony lacking factual support.
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Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB), United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC), claim construction, Obviousness (35 USC § 103)
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