CAFC Oral Arg - Patent claim construction - claim differentiation v. limiting statements in specification

Nov 07, 2011, 09:20 PM

This brief exchange between Judge Lourie and counsel for patentee highlights a tension created when arguing for a broad construction of a patent claim when the patent includes a "summary of the invention" and other statements in the specification that narrowly characterize the invention. An otherwise sound claim differentiation theory seems no match for a narrow "summary of the invention." Retractable Technologies, Inc. v. Becton, Dickinson and Company (2010-1402; clip: 17:32->19:48).