USPTO Policy on Director Review of Institution Decisions Does Not Violate Appointments Clause, Says CAFC

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) today issued a precedential order denying a petition for writ of mandamus filed by Palo Alto Networks (PAN) that asked the court to compel the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to grant Director Review of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s (PTAB’s) decisions not to institute inter partes review (IPR) and post grant review (PGR) of Centripetal Networks’ patents. PAN argued that the USPTO’s policy of refusing to accept requests for Director Review of institution decisions violates the Appointments Clause as set out in United States v. Arthrex, Inc.Read More