In a case involving electronic transfer of protected information, the International Trade Commission filed a petition Wednesday for rehearing en banc with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit of its case against corrective orthodontic device manufacturer ClearCorrect. The initial deadline for a rehearing petition was moved from December to late January upon request from ITC Attorney Sidney Rosenzweig (see 1512090014). In November, a three-judge panel of the Federal Circuit ruled 2-1 in favor of ClearCorrect, saying the ITC doesn't have the jurisdiction to block the international electronic transfer of patent-infringing data. The court's decision overturned an initial ITC decision prohibiting ClearCorrect's affiliate in Pakistan from transmitting digital molds of patients' teeth to the company's headquarters in Houston, due to the alleged infringement on patents held by competitor Align Technology. ClearCorrect attorney Michael Myers told us after the Federal Circuit's ruling that he "wouldn't be surprised" if the case were eventually heard en banc (see 1511100047). In its petition, the commission argued the appeal "presents a precedent-setting question of exceptional importance" -- meaning whether the ITC's abilities to block the importation of infringing products applies only to physical products, or to digital information as well. The agency also said the three-judge panel "erred" in its decision that the world "articles" in the commission's congressionally mandated responsibilities means only material items.
In a case involving electronic transfer of protected information, the International Trade Commission filed a petition Wednesday for rehearing en banc with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit of its case against corrective orthodontic device manufacturer ClearCorrect. The initial deadline for a rehearing petition was moved from December to late January upon request from ITC Attorney Sidney Rosenzweig (see 1512090014). In November, a three-judge panel of the Federal Circuit ruled 2-1 in favor of ClearCorrect, saying the ITC doesn't have the jurisdiction to block the international electronic transfer of patent-infringing data. The court's decision overturned an initial ITC decision prohibiting ClearCorrect's affiliate in Pakistan from transmitting digital molds of patients' teeth to the company's headquarters in Houston, due to the alleged infringement on patents held by competitor Align Technology. ClearCorrect attorney Michael Myers told us after the Federal Circuit's ruling that he "wouldn't be surprised" if the case were eventually heard en banc (see 1511100047). In its petition, the commission argued the appeal "presents a precedent-setting question of exceptional importance" -- meaning whether the ITC's abilities to block the importation of infringing products applies only to physical products, or to digital information as well. The agency also said the three-judge panel "erred" in its decision that the world "articles" in the commission's congressionally mandated responsibilities means only material items.
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of Jan. 18-24:
Assistant Attorney General Leslie Caldwell said law enforcement, even when it has a warrant, is encountering increasing difficulties getting access to critical information in electronic form to prosecute criminals. The digital era is both a blessing and a threat to law enforcement, Caldwell said Monday at the State of the Net conference. Caldwell was a stand-in for Attorney General Loretta Lynch, who was scheduled to speak but was unable to make it back to snowy Washington from the World Economic Forum in Switzerland in time.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Jan 19-22 in case they were missed.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie Caldwell said law enforcement, even when it has a warrant, is encountering increasing difficulties getting access to critical information in electronic form to prosecute criminals. The digital era is both a blessing and a threat to law enforcement, Caldwell said Monday at the State of the Net conference. Caldwell was a stand-in for Attorney General Loretta Lynch, who was scheduled to speak but was unable to make it back to snowy Washington from the World Economic Forum in Switzerland in time.
Large telcos are seeking renewed USF voice support in remote areas where funding was cut off but their obligations to provide phone service continue under a transition to broadband-oriented mechanisms. Representatives of AT&T, CenturyLink, Frontier Communications, Verizon, Windstream and USTelecom jointly discussed the issue with FCC officials in a series of recent meetings, and Frontier sought relief in separate meetings with two commissioners, according to filings in docket 14-192. “It will happen, with some sort of path to broadband,” USTelecom Senior Vice President Jon Banks told us.
FCC proposals to further loosen FCC broadcast foreign ownership rules continue (see 1512220056) to receive broad support, in reply comments filed in docket 15-236 last week. Comcast, Media General, the Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council, and NAB supported FCC proposals to make it easier for broadcasters to be foreign-owned, align broadcaster foreign ownership rules with those for common carriers, and update the rules to account for modern corporate ownership structures and SEC rules.
CBP may only suspend liquidation and collect antidumping and countervailing duty cash deposits if it is specifically directed by the Commerce Department that a product is within the scope of duties, said the Court of International Trade in a decision released to the public on Jan. 13 (here). Finding CBP went above its ministerial role of administering duties by interpreting an ambiguous section of the scope, the court ordered CBP to stop collecting cash deposits from an importer of solar cells from China.
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of Jan. 11-17: