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ARTICLE · 28 AUGUST 2026

Get “Plugged In” To Claim Construction: Socket Solutions, LLC v. Import Global, LLC

Dinsmore & Shohl LLP
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Controlling the meaning of claim terms is essential to drafting strong patents, while pre-empting common claim construction issues is crucial to the scope of patents when it comes to infringement. In Socket Solutions, LLC v. Import Global, LLC, No. 2025-1121 (Fed. Cir. Aug. 4, 2026), the Federal Circuit vacated the district court’s grant of a preliminary injunction due to multiple errors in claim construction.

United StatesIntellectual Property
Evan C. Allen
Evan C. Allen
Sushil Iyer
Sushil Iyer

Controlling the meaning of claim terms is essential to drafting strong patents, while pre-empting common claim construction issues is crucial to the scope of patents when it comes to infringement. In Socket Solutions, LLC v. Import Global, LLC, No. 2025-1121 (Fed. Cir. Aug. 4, 2026), the Federal Circuit vacated the district court’s grant of a preliminary injunction due to multiple errors in claim construction. The case shows how important it is to effectively align the language of the claim with the description of the term in the specification.

Key Takeaways

  • Requirements not supported by the specification will not be used by the courts to properly construct the meaning of claim terms;
  • Claim terms that do not use the word “means” create a rebuttable presumption that they are not means-plus-function terms; and

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