United States Federal Circuit

In patent cases in which claim construction rulings on disputed claim terms are made prior to trial and followed by the parties during the course of the trial, it is the duty of trial courts to inform jurors both of the court's claim construction rulings on all disputed claim terms and of the jury's obligation to adopt and apply the court's determined meanings of disputed claim terms in the jury's deliberations of the facts.

Appellate Information

• Decided 12/09/2003
• Published 12/09/2003

Judges

• LINN, Circuit Judge., Before LOURIE, GAJARSA, and LINN, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Federal Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• K.T. Cherian, Townsend and Townsend and Crew, LLP, of San Francisco, CA, argued for plaintiffs-appellants.   With him on the brief were J. George Seka and Igor Shoiket.   Of counsel on the brief were Rickey L. Faulkner and S. Calvin Capshaw, Brown McCarroll, L.L.P. of Longview, TX;  and Otis Carroll, Ireland, Carroll & Kelley, P.C., of Tyler, TX.


• For Appellees:
  
• John P. Rowley III, Holland & Knight LLP, of McLean, VA, argued for defendant-cross appellant.   With him on the brief were Jennifer A. Short and Joshua C. Krumholz, Holland & Knight LLP, of Boston, MA. Of counsel on the brief was J. Ernest Kenney, Bacon & Thomas, of Alexandria, VA.