Court Judgements

The USPTO Director denied institution of IPR2026-00268, which challenged Howmet Aerospace's patent 11,885,358 covering a blind fastener and installation method. The denial was based on the Director's finding that petitioner CRRC Meishan Co. Ltd. failed to identify the Chinese government entity SASAC as a real party in interest, making the petitioner ineligible to file an IPR under Return Mail and the precedential Tianma decision. The challenged patent claims remain in full force, a positive outcome for Howmet Aerospace.

The Delaware Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Chancery's post-trial judgment against Verisk Analytics, Inc. in its acquisition dispute with ExactLogix (Acculynx). The ruling is a final appellate loss for Verisk, upholding the lower court's decision without modification. The opinion does not state any damages amount or injunctive relief, so the financial exposure is not quantified in the document.

The district court denied summary judgment on the core FCA claim that Zimmer Biomet's commission payments to independent contractor sales reps violate the Anti-Kickback Statute, allowing a trial on whether the company intended to improperly influence surgeon referrals. The court granted summary judgment for Zimmer on the false certification theory and all state-law claims except Colorado. This ruling removes the risk of dismissal but leaves the company facing a trial on substantial FCA exposure, with the government having declined to intervene.

The District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania granted Coinbase's motion to dismiss a securities class action in its entirety. The court found that plaintiffs failed to plead material misrepresentations regarding AML/KYC compliance and verified user data, and while two cybersecurity statements were plausibly false, plaintiffs failed to plead scienter or loss causation. The dismissal removes a significant litigation overhang for Coinbase.

The District of Arizona granted final approval of a class action settlement against LifeStance Health Group over pixel-tracking technology that allegedly collected and disclosed confidential health information. LifeStance will fund a non-reversionary $3,027,874.44 settlement fund covering approximately 900,000 class members, and the case is dismissed with prejudice. The settlement removes a material litigation overhang for a $4.7B market cap company at a cost of ~0.06% of market cap, which is a modest positive resolution.

The court entered a joint stipulated final judgment of patent invalidity in favor of Google LLC, resolving all claims in VirtaMove's patent infringement case. All asserted claims across two patents were found invalid, eliminating any potential damages or injunction risk for Google's products. The judgment is appealable, but the stipulated nature suggests a low probability of reversal.

The court dismissed with prejudice a pro se lawsuit against Meta Platforms, Inc. in the Western District of Michigan. The case, filed by an individual plaintiff, was dismissed on defendants' motions, with the court adopting a magistrate's recommendation and certifying that any appeal would not be taken in good faith. This is a complete and final win for Meta, removing a trivial legal risk with no financial exposure or operational impact.

The court denied Appian's motion for leave to file a second summary judgment motion and its alternative motion to dismiss on forum non conveniens grounds regarding a single 'Criminality' email in Pegasystems' defamation suit. However, the court ordered briefing on whether UK law applies to that email, noting the statement was published in the UK by a UK author to a UK recipient about a UK government contract — a potentially favorable development for Appian that could narrow the remaining trial claims.

The court denied Bank of America's motion to dismiss a putative class action alleging violations of the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA) for failing to reimburse customers defrauded of $106,000 via an online banking scam. The ruling establishes that the EFTA applies to the intrabank segments of an electronically initiated wire transfer, rejecting BoA's argument that the entire transaction is exempt as a wire transfer. This adverse interlocutory ruling allows the case to proceed to discovery, creating litigation risk and potential class-wide liability exposure for BoA on a novel legal theory that has split district courts.

Google obtained a final judgment of invalidity against all asserted patent claims in VirtaMove's patent infringement case, eliminating a potential IP threat to its cloud services. Separately, in the Google Cloud Contact Center AI privacy litigation, the court granted Google's motion to compel arbitration for three named plaintiffs and granted a motion to dismiss the remaining plaintiffs' CIPA claims with leave to amend, significantly narrowing the scope of the putative class action. These rulings remove material legal overhangs for Alphabet.

The Northern District of California granted Google's motion to compel arbitration for three named plaintiffs in the consolidated Google Cloud Contact Center AI privacy class action, and separately granted Google's motion to dismiss the remaining three plaintiffs' CIPA claims with leave to amend. The court held that consent is an element of CIPA claims (not an affirmative defense), that accountholder plaintiffs consented via Home Depot's privacy policy, and that all plaintiffs failed to plead Google intended to record calls without consent. The rulings significantly narrow the scope of the putative class action and reduce litigation exposure for Google's Cloud Contact Center AI product.

In a final written decision in IPR2025-00816, the PTAB held that claims 1–9, 11, and 13–17 of Align Technology's patent covering automated treatment staging for teeth are unpatentable as obvious, while claims 10, 12, 18, and 19 survive. The patent is central to Align's clear aligner technology and is also asserted in a pending West Texas district court case against ClearCorrect. The partial invalidation weakens Align's IP position but leaves key claims intact, creating a mixed outcome.

The PTAB issued a Final Written Decision in IPR2025-00969, finding that Google LLC (a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc.) as petitioner showed by a preponderance of the evidence that claims 1, 22-24, 26-33, and 35-46 of Sandpiper CDN's patent covering shared content delivery infrastructure are unpatentable. Claims 2 and 34 survive. The patent is asserted against Google in a pending district court case (Sandpiper CDN, LLC v. Google LLC, C.D. Cal.), so the cancellation of most claims reduces Google's infringement exposure in that litigation. The decision is a positive outcome for Google but relates to a single patent in a broader dispute, limiting materiality.

The PTAB issued a Final Written Decision in IPR2025-00916, holding all challenged claims (1–20) of U.S. Patent 11,811,582 B2 ('Cluster Computing') unpatentable as obvious. AMD was a co-petitioner alongside Intel, and the patent owner is Advanced Cluster Systems, Inc. The decision eliminates a patent that was asserted against AMD in a parallel district court case (W.D. Tex.), removing a potential infringement liability.

The PTAB issued a Final Written Decision in IPR2025-00989, finding all challenged claims (1–8 and 12–19) of Inari Medical's '291 patent (owned by Stryker Corp via subsidiary) unpatentable. This is a loss for Stryker/Inari, as the patent covering hemostasis valves used in minimally invasive surgery has been invalidated, removing a key IP barrier for petitioner Imperative Care.

The PTAB issued a Final Written Decision in IPR2025-00916, finding all challenged claims (1–20) of Advanced Cluster Systems' U.S. Patent 11,811,582 B2 ("Cluster Computing") unpatentable as obvious. Intel Corporation, as a petitioner, successfully eliminated a patent that was asserted against it in pending Western District of Texas litigation. This removes a potential infringement liability for Intel related to cluster computing technology.

The Fourth Circuit affirmed summary judgment in favor of Consumer Portfolio Services in a civil action brought by Sheila Knox. The appellate court found no reversible error in the district court's April 22, 2026 ruling. This final appellate victory removes any remaining litigation risk from this case, which is a positive resolution for CPSS.

The court denied with prejudice the plaintiff's renewed motion for class certification in a putative class action alleging false and misleading labeling on Abbott's Ensure nutrition drinks. The court also granted Abbott's motion in limine to exclude the plaintiff's expert damages model as unreliable. This ruling eliminates the risk of a class-wide damages award and materially reduces Abbott's litigation exposure in this case.

The Delaware Supreme Court affirmed dismissal of a stockholder's lawsuit against Lam Research Corp. on laches grounds. The plaintiff's claims — conversion, breach of contract, and breach of the implied covenant — were deemed untimely because the statute of limitations ran by 2017, and no tolling or extraordinary circumstances were pleaded. The ruling is a final win for Lam Research, removing a legacy dispute over shares worth millions.

The Delaware Court of Chancery entered judgment in favor of Alexion (now AstraZeneca) on the remaining Milestone 1 CRE claim, finding that SRS failed to prove a breach. The court also ruled that postjudgment interest on the entire judgment amount will be calculated using the contract rate as of the date of judgment, resolving a dispute over the bond amount for the stay pending appeal. This final order resolves the last substantive issue in the case, removing further uncertainty.

The Third Circuit summarily affirmed the dismissal with prejudice of a lawsuit against Blue Foundry Bancorp (BLFY) by the Arsenis family, who sought over $100 million in damages related to a mortgage forbearance dispute. The appellate court found no private right of action under the CARES Act, National Banking Act, or Fifth Amendment, and upheld the district court's ruling that the complaint failed to state any federal claim. This final, complete victory removes a material litigation overhang for BLFY.

In a Final Written Decision in PGR2025-00024, the PTAB held all challenged claims (1, 2, 6–15, and 17–30) of Halozyme's U.S. Patent 12,060,590 (covering modified PH20 hyaluronidase polypeptides) unpatentable on written description, enablement, and obviousness grounds. As petitioner, Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC (a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc.) successfully invalidated the patent, which is part of a broader patent dispute involving multiple related patents and a pending district court action. This removes a potential infringement barrier for Merck's products that may use or rely on hyaluronidase technology.

The PTAB issued a Final Written Decision in PGR2025-00030, holding all challenged claims (1, 2, and 6–30) of Halozyme's '758 patent unpatentable. The patent covers modified PH20 hyaluronidase polypeptides. Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC (Merck) was the petitioner. The decision removes a patent that Halozyme had asserted against Merck in a pending New Jersey district court case (2:25-cv-03179), reducing Merck's infringement exposure on a patent family central to that litigation.

The Southern District of Ohio granted Google's motion to dismiss a copyright infringement lawsuit brought by Weekend Warrior Clothing, LLC. The court held that Google's Shopping Ads program does not involve volitional conduct sufficient for direct infringement, and that under the Supreme Court's recent Cox Communications decision, Google cannot be held contributorily liable for merely failing to police infringing merchant ads. The case was dismissed without prejudice, with leave to amend within 30 days.

The Southern District of Ohio dismissed with prejudice all copyright infringement claims against Google (Alphabet Inc.) in a suit brought by Weekend Warrior Clothing. The court held that Google's Shopping Ads program does not involve volitional conduct sufficient for direct infringement, and that under the Supreme Court's recent Cox Communications decision, Google cannot be held contributorily liable for merely failing to police third-party merchant infringement. The dismissal is without prejudice, but the ruling eliminates a material litigation risk for Google's advertising business.

The Northern District of California issued a Markman claim construction order finding two key terms in VirtaMove's asserted patents indefinite, invalidating all asserted claims against Amazon (and Google). The '814 Patent claim 1 term 'disparate computing environments' was found indefinite, and the '762 Patent claim 17 term 'an incompatible computer platform in which the first software application is not intended to execute' was also found indefinite. This eliminates the patent infringement case against Amazon, removing a material litigation risk.

The Northern District of California issued a claim construction order in VirtaMove, Corp. v. Google LLC, finding two terms in claim 17 of the '762 Patent and one term in claim 1 of the '814 Patent indefinite, thereby invalidating those claims and all dependent claims. This eliminates the asserted patent infringement claims against Google (and Amazon in a related action) on the patents-in-suit, removing a material litigation risk for Alphabet Inc.

The Northern District of California issued a claim construction order in VirtaMove v. Google LLC, finding key terms in two asserted patents indefinite. Claims 17–20 of the '762 Patent and claims 1–30 of the '814 Patent were invalidated for indefiniteness, effectively ending the patent infringement case against Google. This removes a material litigation risk for Alphabet/Google, as the patents covered software containerization and cross-platform execution technologies.

The court dismissed with prejudice a lawsuit against Tesla Inc. and co-defendants, adopting a magistrate judge's recommendation. The dismissal is a final win for Tesla, removing a litigation overhang entirely.

The Delaware Court of Chancery granted summary judgment in favor of Walmart Inc., ruling that a former employee, Jenisha Likansis, is not entitled to mandatory advancement of legal fees under Walmart's bylaws. The court found she was not an officer of Walmart, Walmart Connect, or Walmart LLC, as she was not appointed by the Board or CEO of Walmart, nor by the manager of Walmart LLC. This ruling eliminates a potential liability for Walmart, as the company will not be required to advance litigation expenses for this former employee.

The Delaware Court of Chancery dismissed with prejudice all claims by M.A.C. Job Fund I, LLC against Voyager Technologies, Inc. The court held that Voyager had no contractual obligation to accept EB-5 investments after the Marketing Window closed, that the contract was not amended by the parties' post-window conduct, and that the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing does not require Voyager to accept investments it was not contractually obligated to accept. This is a complete win for Voyager, removing litigation uncertainty and potential damages exposure.

The D.C. District Court entered a final judgment recognizing and enforcing a foreign arbitration award against Novartis Pharma AG, ordering Novartis to pay Genentech approximately $17.84 million in arbitration costs and attorneys' fees plus 9% annual interest. The ruling also declares that Novartis's drug Vabysmo (faricimab) is not a licensed product under the parties' collaboration agreements and denies Novartis's claim that Genentech breached the agreements by commercializing Vabysmo outside the U.S. — a clear loss for Novartis on both financial and contractual fronts.

The D.C. District Court granted Genentech's petition to enforce a foreign arbitration award against Novartis, confirming that Vabysmo (faricimab) is not a licensed product under their collaboration agreements and ordering Novartis to pay ~$17.8M in costs plus interest. This removes uncertainty around Vabysmo's commercial freedom and affirms Genentech's right to market the drug globally without royalty obligations to Novartis.

A federal court denied a motion to lift the stay in a patent case against Apple, keeping the litigation paused while the USPTO conducts ex parte reexamination (EPR) of three of the four asserted patents. Apple stipulated it will not assert certain invalidity grounds that were raised in the EPR requests. The ruling is a procedural win for Apple, deferring the case and potentially narrowing future disputes.

A final judgment of $440.3M plus pre-judgment interest was entered against Google LLC in a class-action privacy lawsuit concerning web-tracking practices on Android and non-Android devices. The ruling is a final outcome after a jury verdict and prior orders, confirming material financial exposure for Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL).

The First Circuit partially reversed the district court's dismissal of a wrongful death suit against Amgen concerning its migraine drug Aimovig (erenumab). The appellate panel affirmed that pre-approval failure-to-warn claims are preempted, but reversed the denial of leave to amend, finding the plaintiff plausibly alleged that four post-approval studies (Rehni, Liu, Sorby-Adams, Zhai) could constitute 'newly acquired information' enabling a CBE label change. The case is remanded for further proceedings on this narrower theory, reopening litigation risk for Amgen on a drug with billions in annual sales.

The Delaware Superior Court issued a post-trial opinion in Longshot Holdings v. Quaker Chemical, finding that Quaker did not breach the MIPA by refusing to pay an additional ~$1.4 million in gross-up taxes. The court ruled that the term 'Seller' in the contract referred only to Longshot, not its individual shareholders, and that Longshot failed to prove damages. This resolves a legacy dispute from a 2020 acquisition and removes a contingent liability for Quaker.

The Third Circuit reversed the grant of summary judgment in favor of Sandoz on its breach-of-contract claim against United Therapeutics, finding the settlement agreement ambiguous, and remanded for trial on liability. The court also reversed summary judgment for UTC on the tortious interference claim, remanding for independent analysis, but affirmed dismissal of Sandoz's antitrust claims, finding UTC had procompetitive justifications for its cartridge restrictions. The $61.6M damages award was vacated pending the breach-of-contract retrial.

The court denied plaintiff's second motion to amend and dismissed the case with prejudice, ruling that the proposed amended complaint still failed to state any viable claim against Wells Fargo under RESPA, TILA, or civil rights conspiracy theories. This is a complete win for Wells Fargo — the case is closed with no damages, no injunction, and no material financial exposure.

The Delaware Court of Chancery granted summary judgment to former TransUnion subsidiary officers Esposito and Nichols, ruling that TransUnion and its subsidiaries must advance their legal fees and expenses in the underlying Poe lawsuit. The court found the advancement provisions in the relevant operating agreements and TransUnion's bylaws unambiguous, rejecting TransUnion's arguments that the claims did not arise from the plaintiffs' corporate capacities. The ruling also entitles plaintiffs to fees-on-fees and prejudgment interest, creating a mandatory cash outflow for TransUnion, though the amount is not yet quantified.

The court overruled plaintiffs' objections to the magistrate judge's Report and Recommendation, ordered plaintiffs to execute a settlement agreement within 14 days, and will dismiss the case with prejudice. This is a final, favorable resolution for JPMorgan Chase — the case is ending via settlement with no adverse judgment, injunction, or ongoing exposure.

The court granted Abercrombie & Fitch's motion to dismiss a putative consumer class action alleging hidden shipping fees, with prejudice as to the named plaintiff. The ruling eliminates this specific lawsuit's risk entirely, though the dismissal does not preclude a different plaintiff from filing a similar claim.

The Delaware Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Chancery's dismissal of an insurance coverage dispute between Gemini Insurance Company and Bausch & Lomb Americas, Inc. The ruling is a procedural win for Bausch & Lomb — the insurer's appeal was rejected on waiver grounds, and the case remains dismissed. No damages, injunction, or financial exposure was imposed on Bausch & Lomb.

The Delaware Court of Chancery granted partial summary judgment in a post-closing purchase price dispute over Vera Bradley's sale of its Pura Vida subsidiary. The court ruled that the buyer's $5.4M inventory reserve adjustment is a legal claim challenging the inventory representation and warranty, not a proper subject for the accounting expert in the true-up process. However, the court also held that GAAP in the true-up does not require consistency with past practices, allowing the buyer to test GAAP compliance on other items. Both parties' summary judgment motions on the specific performance claim were denied, leaving remaining issues for the expert.

The court dismissed a consumer privacy class action against Meta Platforms, Inc. for lack of Article III standing, finding that the named plaintiffs failed to show a concrete injury from Meta Pixel tracking on the California DMV website. The ruling eliminates a potentially large class-action exposure related to the Meta Pixel tool, removing a significant litigation overhang for Meta.