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Fregeau v. Mossinghoff

Name
Fregeau v. Mossinghoff
Cite
776 F.2d 1034
Year
1985
Bluebook cite
Fregeau v. Mossinghoff, 776 F.2d 1034 (Fed. Cir 1985).
Author
URL
776 F.2d 1034
Item Type
case
Summary
Appeal from district court judgment dismissing civil action challenging determination of USPTO Board of Appeals that claims are unpatentable under § 101, § 112, and § 103. The invention at issue was a method for enhancing the flavor of a beverage by passing it through a magnetic field. With regard to utility under § 101, the patent applicant had challenged the examiner’s rejection by submitting the affidavit of a Food Science Professor. This affidavit described the results of taste tests and tests for detecting physical property changes in food after performance of the method, which were performed by the professor. The examiner found the affidavit unconvincing, stating that the differences detected in the professor’s tests were insignificant. The board agreed, noting that the experimental data was limited to a relatively small number of samples and agreeing that any differences in physical properties were minimal.

The Federal Circuit first noted that the issue of lack of utility because of inoperativeness is a question of fact. Id. at 1038. Thus, the district court’s decision was to be overturned only if it was clearly erroneous. Id. The court also stated that the examiner bears the initial burden of making a prima facie case of unpatentability. Id. The court noted, however, that the patent applicant had conceded that the examiner had established this, and that the applicant thus bore the burden of rebutting the rejection. Id. Additionally, the applicant admitted that the invention was “one about which those of ordinary skill in the flavor chemistry art would be skeptical when first hearing of it.” Id. at 1035.

The Federal Circuit noted the district court’s finding of lack of utility, which was based on the same grounds relied upon by the examiner and board: the results of the tests relied upon in the affidavit were not clear; the results were based on a select group of beverages while the claims encompassed a much broader class of liquids; and any observed physical property changes in the liquids tested were de minimus. Id. at 1039. The court agreed with these findings, and found that the applicant’s evidence was insufficient to overcome the examiner’s prima facie case of unpatentability for lack of utility. Id.

Excerpts and Summaries

Created
Saturday 04 of October, 2008 20:28:51 GMT
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Saturday 04 of October, 2008 20:28:51 GMT
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