Festo and the Doctrine of Equivalents: Implications for Patent Infringement Litigation

International Intellectual Property Law & Policy, Vol. 7, 9-1, 2002

GWU Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2013-25

GWU Law School Public Law Research Paper No. 2013-25

18 Pages Posted: 27 Feb 2013

See all articles by Martin J. Adelman

Martin J. Adelman

George Washington University - Law School

Date Written: 2002

Abstract

This article provides an in-depth analysis of the Federal Circuit’s en banc decision in Festo Corporation v. Shoketsu Kinzokukogyo Kabushiki Co., Ltd. Overall, “the Federal Circuit failed to expressly limit the application of the doctrine of equivalents to those accused products or processes that were not reasonably foreseeable at the time of the patent, but did limit the doctrine of equivalents by expanding the reach of the doctrine of prosecution history estoppel.” The article notes that the “key issue[s] left unsettled by Festo [are] the status of prosecution history by argument as well as the meaning of an amended limitation.”

Keywords: Federal Circuit, doctrine of equivalents, prosecution history estoppel

JEL Classification: O31, O34

Suggested Citation

Adelman, Martin J., Festo and the Doctrine of Equivalents: Implications for Patent Infringement Litigation (2002). International Intellectual Property Law & Policy, Vol. 7, 9-1, 2002, GWU Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2013-25, GWU Law School Public Law Research Paper No. 2013-25, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2224201

Martin J. Adelman (Contact Author)

George Washington University - Law School ( email )

2000 H. St. NW
Washington, DC 20052
United States

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