Conflicting Claim Constructions by District Court and PTAB No Basis for Interlocutory Appeal

The court denied plaintiff's motion to certify for interlocutory appeal the court's claim construction where the PTAB construed certain claim terms differently. "In this case, there have been different decisions on the same contested issue by two different adjudicative bodies: this Court and the [PTAB], in the parties’ Inter Partes Reexamination, currently on appeal at the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. . . . [D]istrict courts interpret claims using the 'ordinary and customary meaning' of the terms . . . whereas in PTO proceedings, claims are construed under the 'broadest reasonable interpretation' standard. Hence, it is not surprising that constructions from IPRs and other PTO proceedings may differ from or, indeed, be diametrically opposed to those of district courts, as is the case here, where, for example, this Court found the preambles limiting, but the PTO did not so find. . . . While there are 'conflicting interpretations from' different adjudicative bodies, the interpretations stem from different standards. Thus, the Court does not believe that the instant conflicting determinations actually present the scenario of 'conflicting opinions,' envisioned under § 1292(b)."

Wonderland Nurserygoods Co., Ltd. v. Thorley Industries, LLC, 2-12-cv-00196 (PAWD October 20, 2014, Order) (Fischer, J.)