Align Technology claims win in ClearCorrect patent spat

Align Technology (NSDQ:ALGN) said today that the US Patent and Trademark Office confirmed 3 patents that had been challenged by competitor and regular legal rival ClearCorrect.

The confirmed patents were related to transparent dental aligners, San Jose, Calif.-based Align Tech said, and include 2 which the company is asserting in its patent infringement suit against ClearCorrect.

ClearCorrect responded to the confirmation of the patents by filing 2 more rexamination requests regarding one of the patents that was just confirmed, according to a press release published by Align.

“These reexaminations have now ended with Align prevailing on every claim of every challenged patent. ClearCorrect’s previous attempts to challenge the validity of Align patents — at trial before the International Trade Commission — also resulted in the rejection of all of ClearCorrect’s invalidity contentions and a finding of validity of all of the asserted patents. Align’s confidence in the validity of its patent portfolio continues to be borne out by the positive rulings of neutral decision makers like the USPTO and the ITC,” VP & GC Roger George said in a press release.

Earlier this month, Align it filed a patent infringement suit against ClearCorrect and Your Smile Direct in the UK, claiming the companies infringe upon patents related to its transparent dental aligners.

In the new suit, Align Technology asserts that ClearCorrect infringes on 4 Align patnets by marketing, importing and selling ClearCorrect’s clear aligners. The suit also includes 3 infringement charges against Your Smile Direct for marketing, importing and selling ClearCorrect aligners under the separate brand.

Last September, the U.S. International Trade Commission declined to fight for its authority to regulate data, leaving the battle between Align and ClearCorrect to play out in patent infringement.

Both Align and the ITC had until August 26 to appeal a ruling made in November 2015 which found that the ITC does not have jurisdiction over the transmission of digital data over the internet.

In March, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit denied a plea for an en banc rehearing of the case against ClearCorrect

The post Align Technology claims win in ClearCorrect patent spat appeared first on MassDevice.

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