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Litigation Alert: Cardiac Pacemakers, Inc. v. St. Jude Medical, Inc.-The Federal Circuit Holds 35 U.S.C. s. 271(f) Inapplicable To Method Claims.

Article Excerpt
On August 19, 2009, the Federal Circuit, sitting en banc, limited the reach of 35 U.S.C. s. 271(f), holding that the statute does not apply to method claims. The Federal Circuit's decision in Cardiac Pacemakers, Inc. v. St. Jude Medical, Inc., _F.3d_ (Fed. Cir. 2009) (en banc in part) (Lourie, J.), reversed its earlier holding in Union Carbide Chemicals Plastics Technology Corp. v. Shell Oil Co., 425 F.3d 1366 (Fed. Cir. 2005). In overturning a relatively new precedent, the Federal Circuit explained that the language and legislative history of Section 271(f), as well as the presumption against extraterritorial application of U.S. law, militated against applying the statute to method and process claims.

Section 271(f) provides a cause of action for patent infringement when the "components" of a patented invention are "supplied" for assembly abroad. Congress enacted the statute in response to the Supreme Court's decision in Deepsouth Packing Co., Inc. v. Laitram Corp., 406 U.S. 518 (1972), which held that a manufacturer who shipped unassembled parts of a patented shrimp deveining machine abroad was not...

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