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ARTICLE · 28 OCTOBER 2025

What The Frack? FCA Clarifies Claim Construction And Double Patenting

McCarthy Tétrault
McCarthy Tétrault
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On October 20, 2025, the Federal Court of Appeal (FCA) partially overturned the lower court's decision in the ongoing patent litigation between NCS Multistage Inc. and Kobold Corporation (2025 FCA 187).

CanadaIntellectual Property
TechLex Blog
TechLex Blog
Sanjaya Mendis
Sanjaya Mendis
James S.S. Holtom
James S.S. Holtom
Daniella Febbraro
Daniella Febbraro
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On October 20, 2025, the Federal Court of Appeal (FCA) partially overturned the lower court's decision in the ongoing patent litigation between NCS Multistage Inc. and Kobold Corporation (2025 FCA 187). This ruling provides important guidance on claim construction and double patenting in Canadian patent law.

Background

NCS and Kobold are competitors in the oilfield services sector, specializing in downhole equipment for hydraulic fracturing. The dispute centered on Kobold's 571 Patent, titled "Downhole Tool Having a Shock-Absorbing Sleeve", describing a shock-absorbing system for a sliding sleeve that uses viscous dampening (pressurized fluid in the space between the housing and sleeve, called the "annular space") to control the speed of the sleeve. The 571 is a voluntary divisional patent of the 830 Patent, which itself claims an apparatus for a downhole tool with a shock absorbing sleeve.

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