Patent Enforcers: Can the ITC Make Your Day?

Your competition is infringing your patent rights and you want to take some action to protect your rights. You are aware that patent litigation in a federal district court isn’t necessarily streamlined and can get bogged down in procedural skirmishes that are unrelated to the underlying substantive issues of infringement and validity. You also know that your competition’s products arise from international trade. Here is what you need to know about using the United States International Trade Commission (ITC) to enforce your U.S. patent rights.

The ITC and Section 337. The ITC is an independent, quasi-judicial federal agency that can take action against certain unfair trade practices such as patent infringement. In response to a complaint by a patent enforcer or on its own initiative, the ITC determines (under section 337, Tariff Act of 1930, Investigations of Unfair Practices in Import Trade) whether there is patent infringement in the importation