In February, a relatively difficult month for patent owners, the PTAB cancelled 451 (79.96%) instituted claims across 37 IPR and PGR Final Written Decisions, including decisions issued following remand from the Federal Circuit. A significant contributor to the large number of cancelled claims in February was the Board's Final Written Decision in a set of three consolidated PGRs (Simpson Strong-Tie Co. v. Columbia Insurance Co., Nos. PGR2023-00047, -00048, and -00049), which collectively addressed the patentability of 105 instituted claims, resulting in 103 cancelled claims and 2 claims surviving. In total, 83 (14.72%) instituted claims survived in February FWDs, and patent owners conceded 30 (5.32%) instituted claims through motions to amend or disclaimer (in cases reaching a final decision). For comparison, the cumulative average cancellation rate of instituted claims in IPR, CBM, and PGR Final Written Decisions is slightly below 74%.
On a per-case basis, no instituted or substitute claims survived in 27 (72.97%) decisions, all instituted claims survived in 5 (13.51%) decisions, and 5 (13.51%) decisions had a mixed outcome in which at least one instituted or substitute claim survived and at least one instituted claim was cancelled.
Turning to motions to amend that were addressed on the merits in a Final Written Decision, the PTAB has cumulatively granted 662 (15.53%) proposed substitute claims while denying 3,601 (84.47%) proposed substitute claims through February 28, 2025.
Patentees have had slightly more success with motions to amend in PGRs. The PTAB has cumulatively granted 69 (20.60%) proposed substitute claims in PGR motions to amend while denying 266 (79.40%) proposed substitute claims.
The overall cumulative instituted claim survival rate in IPRs, CBMs, and PGRs through February 28, 2025, broken down by technology center, is as follows:
The cumulative number of Final Written Decisions through February 28, 2025, separated by technology center, is as follows:
Additional cumulative statistics on the Board's IPR, CBM, and PGR decisions, updated through February 28, 2025, are available here on the At the PTAB blog.
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