Some of you may remember the Federal Circuit’s decision from a few (actually 5!) years ago holding that patent owner statements made in an IPR proceeding may “support a finding of prosecution disclaimer during claim construction.” That decision left unresolved an important question—whether disclaimer statements apply in the same IPR proceeding in which they’re made. Can a patent owner disclaim coverage of some portion of its claims in an IPR to obtain a narrowed claim construction and avoid the prior art? In this week’s case of the week, the Federal Circuit answers that question with a clear “no.”
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