On July 17, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued a decision confirming that the principles of prosecution history disclaimer, which apply to utility patents, also apply to design patents.
In general, U.S. design patents have a narrow scope. However, in an infringement analysis, design patents may be entitled to a range of equivalents.
Read more about the scope of U.S. design patents and the decision made in this case.
Authors:
Brett Rosen
Email: brett.rosen@bipc.com