Controversial Design Patent Topics Face Federal Circuit in Apple v. Samsung

On December 4, 2014, the Federal Circuit heard oral arguments in Apple Inc. v. Samsung Elecs. Co. Bloomberg BNA contacted Finnegan attorney Elizabeth D. Ferrill to provide comment on the scope of the coverage of Apple's design patents and the amount of damages that can be expected. Ferrillnoted that while counsel did not disagree the patents at issue each covered “a slice of the iPhone,” they did disagree on the impact the “functional elements” of design would have on “the overall impression of the claimed ornamental features." Ferrill also noted “an uphill battle” with regard to Samsung’s damages argument.