In ArcelorMittal France v. AK Steel Corp., the
Federal Circuit found that the addition of a dependent claim to a
reissue application improperly broadened the scope of the original
independent claims beyond the two-year period for a broadening
reissue. While the court invoked the law-of-the-case doctrine, the
same result could occur with any patent where the claims have
been construed more narrowly.
The Patent At Issue
The patent at issue was ArcelorMittal's U.S. Patent No.
RE44,153, which was a reissue of U.S. Patent 6,296,805.
Claim 1 as originally granted recites:
1. A hot-rolled coated steel sheet
comprising a hot-rolled steel sheet coated with an aluminum or
aluminum alloy coating, wherein the steel in the sheet comprises
the following composition by weight ... and the steel sheet has
a very high mechanical resistance after
thermal treatment and the aluminum or aluminum alloy coating
provides a high resistance to corrosion of the steel sheet.
