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Smith & Nephew Inc. v. Arthrex Inc.

Consolidated with:

Docket No. Op. Below Argument Opinion Vote Author Term
19-1452 Fed. Cir. Mar 1, 2021 Jun 21, 2021 5-4 Roberts OT 2020

Holding: The unreviewable authority wielded by Administrative Patent Judges during inter partes review is incompatible with their appointment by the Secretary of Commerce to an inferior office.

Judgment: Vacated and remanded, 5-4, in an opinion by Chief Justice Roberts on June 21, 2021. Justices Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh and Barrett joined Parts I and II of the opinion, and Justices Alito, Kavanaugh and Barrett joined Part III of the opinion. Justice Gorsuch filed an opinion concurring in part and dissenting in part. Justice Breyer filed an opinion concurring in the judgment in part and dissenting in part, in which Justices Sotomayor and Kagan joined. Justice Thomas filed a dissenting opinion, in which Justices Breyer, Sotomayor and Kagan joined as to Parts I and II.

SCOTUSblog Coverage

DateProceedings and Orders (key to color coding)
06/29/2020Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due August 3, 2020)
07/20/2020Blanket Consent filed by Petitioners, Smith & Nephew, Inc., et al. VIDED
07/20/2020Blanket Consent filed by Respondent, Arthrex, Inc. VIDED
07/20/2020Blanket Consent filed by Respondent, United States VIDED
07/22/2020Memorandum of respondent United States filed. VIDED.
07/24/2020Response to petition from respondent Arthrex, Inc. filed. VIDED.
08/03/2020Brief amicus curiae of Comcast Cable Communications, LLC filed.
08/12/2020DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 9/29/2020.
08/14/2020Reply of petitioners Smith & Nephew, Inc., et al. filed. (Distributed)
10/05/2020DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 10/9/2020.
10/13/2020Petition GRANTED, the petition for a writ of certiorari in No. 19-1434 is granted as to Federal Circuit case No. 2018-2140, and the petition for a writ of certiorari in No. 19-1458 is granted, all limited to Questions 1 and 2 as set forth in the July 22, 2020 Memorandum for the United States. The cases are consolidated, and a total of one hour is allotted for oral argument. VIDED.
10/13/2020Because the Court has consolidated these cases for briefing and oral argument, future filings and activity in the cases will now be reflected on the docket of No. 19-1434. Subsequent filings in these cases must therefore be submitted through the electronic filing system in No. 19-1434. Each document submitted in connection with one or more of these cases must include on its cover the case number and caption for each case in which the filing is intended to be submitted. Where a filing is submitted in fewer than all of the cases, the docket entry will reflect the case number(s) in which the filing is submitted; a document filed in all of the consolidated cases will be noted as “VIDED.”
12/31/2020SET FOR ARGUMENT on Monday, March 1, 2021. VIDED.
01/14/2021CIRCULATED
01/25/2021Record requested from the U.S.C.A.Federal Circuit.
02/24/2021The record from U.S.C.A. Federal Circuit is electronic and located on Pacer.
03/01/2021Argued. For United States: Malcolm L. Stewart, Deputy Solicitor General, Department of Justice, Washington, D. C. For Smith & Nephew, Inc., et al.: Mark A. Perry, Washington, D. C. For Arthrex, Inc.: Jeffrey A. Lamken, Washington, D. C. VIDED.
06/21/2021Judgment VACATED and case REMANDED. Roberts, C. J., delivered the opinion of the Court with respect to Parts I and II, in which Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Barrett, JJ., joined, and an opinion with respect to Part III, in which Alito, Kavanaugh, and Barrett, JJ., joined. Gorsuch, J., filed an opinion concurring in part and dissenting in part. Breyer, J., filed an opinion concurring in the judgment in part and dissenting in part, in which Sotomayor and Kagan, JJ., joined. Thomas, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which Breyer, Sotomayor, and Kagan, JJ., joined as to Parts I and II. VIDED.
07/23/2021JUDGMENT ISSUED.