Medtronic, Inc. v. Mirowski Family Ventures, LLC

Docket No.	Op. Below	Argument	Opinion	Vote	Author	Term
12-1128	Fed. Cir.	Nov 5, 2013	Jan 22, 2014	9-0	Breyer	OT 2013

Holding: When a licensee seeks a declaratory judgment against a patentee to establish that its products do not infringe the licensed patent, the patentee bears the burden of persuasion on the issue of infringement.

Judgment: Reversed, 9-0, in an opinion by Justice Breyer on January 22, 2014.

SCOTUSblog Coverage

Opinion analysis: Justices unimpressed with Federal Circuits mastery of federal procedure curriculum (Ronald Mann, January 23, 2014)
Argument analysis: Justices worry that Federal Circuit has thumb on the scale for patent-holders (Ronald Mann, November 8, 2013)
Argument preview: Federal Circuit tees one up for Justices in patent procedural dispute. (Ronald Mann, October 29, 2013)
Court to rule on government prayer (Lyle Denniston, May 20, 2013)
Petition of the day (Mary Pat Dwyer, May 10, 2013)

Date	Proceedings and Orders (key to color coding)
03/14/2013	Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due April 17, 2013)
04/05/2013	Brief of respondent Mirowski Family Ventures, LLC in opposition filed.
04/25/2013	Reply of petitioner Medtronic, Inc. filed.
04/30/2013	DISTRIBUTED for Conference of May 16, 2013.
05/20/2013	Petition GRANTED.
06/05/2013	The time to file the joint appendix and petitioner's brief on the merits is extended to and including July 26, 2013.
06/05/2013	The time to file respondents' brief on the merits is extended to and including September 16, 2013.
07/26/2013	Joint appendix filed. (Statement of costs filed.)
07/26/2013	Brief of petitioner Medtronic, Inc. filed.
08/02/2013	Brief amicus curiae of the United States filed.
08/02/2013	Brief amici curiae of Legal Scholars filed.
08/02/2013	Brief amicus curiae of Tessera Technologies, Inc. in support of neither party filed.
08/19/2013	CIRCULATED.
08/20/2013	SET FOR ARGUMENT on Tuesday, November 5, 2013.
09/03/2013	Record from U.S.C.A. for Federal Circuit is electronic (Not PACER).
09/03/2013	Additional record received from U.S.C.A. for Federal. Circuit. (1 box)
09/11/2013	Motion of the Solicitor General for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae and for divided argument filed.
09/16/2013	Brief of respondent Mirowski Family Ventures, LLC filed. (Distributed)
09/20/2013	Motion of Tessera Technologies, Inc. in support of neither party for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae and for enlarged argument or, in the alternative divided argument filed.
09/20/2013	Brief amicus curiae of Koninklijke Philips, N.V. filed. (Distributed)
09/23/2013	Brief amicus curiae of Intellectual Property Owners Association filed. (Distributed)
09/30/2013	Joint opposition of the parties to motion of Tessera Technologies, Inc. for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae and for divided argument.
10/15/2013	Motion of the Solicitor General for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae and for divided argument GRANTED.
10/15/2013	Motion of Tessera Technologies, Inc. in support of neither party for leave to participate in oral argument as amicus curiae and for divided argument DENIED.
10/16/2013	Reply of petitioner Medtronic, Inc. filed. (Distributed)
11/05/2013	Argued. For petitioner: Seth P. Waxman, Washington, D. C.; and Curtis E. Gannon, Assistant to the Solicitor General, Department of Justice, Washington, D. C. (for United States, as amicus curiae.) For respondents: Arthur I. Neustadt, Alexandria, Va.
01/22/2014	Judgment REVERSED and case REMANDED. Breyer, J., delivered the opinion for a unanimous Court.
01/31/2014	Record for U.S.C.A. for the Federal Circuit has been RETURNED.
02/24/2014	JUDGMENT ISSUED.

Issue: Whether, in a declaratory judgment action brought by a licensee under”MedImmune, Inc. v. Genentech, Inc., the licensee has the burden to prove that its products do not infringe the patent, or whether (as is the case in all other patent litigation, including other declaratory judgment actions), the patentee must prove infringement.