What is the role of courts in handling duty of disclosure and inequitable conduct issues?

Courts play a primary role in handling duty of disclosure and inequitable conduct issues in the patent system. According to MPEP 2010: “It is the courts and not the Office that are in the best position to fashion an equitable remedy to fit the precise facts in those cases where inequitable conduct is established.”

The courts’ responsibilities include:

• Determining whether inequitable conduct has occurred
• Applying the doctrine of unclean hands in patent cases
• Fashioning appropriate remedies for proven inequitable conduct
• Handling appeals related to duty of disclosure issues
• Addressing inequitable conduct allegations in patent litigation

The MPEP emphasizes that “inequitable conduct is not set by statute as a criteria for patentability but rather is a judicial application of the doctrine of unclean hands which is appropriate to be handled by the courts rather than by an administrative body.” This underscores the courts’ central role in addressing these complex issues within the patent system.

To learn more:

• courts
• duty of disclosure
• inequitable conduct
• patent litigation
• doctrine of unclean hands