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ARTICLE · 23 SEPTEMBER 2026

Federal Circuit Vacates Injunction Over Claim Construction

Lerner David Littenberg Krumholz & Mentlik, LLP
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The Federal Circuit vacated a preliminary injunction in a patent infringement case after determining that the district court misconstrued two critical claim terms—'backplate' and 'pin'—in its likelihood-of-success analysis. The appellate court rejected both parties' proposed constructions for 'backplate' and held that 'pin' should carry its plain and ordinary meaning rather than being subject to means-plus-function interpretation.

United StatesIntellectual Property
Matthew Shatynski
Matthew Shatynski
Craig Drachtman
Craig Drachtman
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In Socket Solutions LLC v. Import Global LLC, No. 2025-1121 (Fed. Cir. Aug. 4, 2026), the Federal Circuit vacated a preliminary injunction and remanded after concluding that the district court erred in construing two claim terms in its likelihood-of-success analysis.

Socket Solutions owns U.S. Patent No. 9,509,080, directed to an indoor wall outlet cover that conceals the outlet contacts and includes a cord and power strip so that furniture can be placed flush against the wall. Socket sued Import Global for infringement and moved for a preliminary injunction. The district court granted the injunction, based on in part on construing “backplate” as a component of the “cover” relative to the “frontplate” and construing “pin” as a means for making an electrical connection between the wires and prongs. Import Global appealed, arguing that the injunction analysis was flawed because both terms had been misconstrued.

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