Today, in Samsung v. Apple, the Supreme Court reversed the $400 million verdict Apple won against Samsung over certain elements of Apple's iPhone design. In an unanimous decision authored by Justice Sotomayor, the Court threw out the earlier verdict of the Federal Circuit, holding that the lower court erred when it ordered Samsung to pay damages equal to its entire profit from smartphones with infringing design elements. 

In the unending saga of Samsung v. Apple (and Apple v. Samsung), the Supreme Court has recently granted certiorari on a single question relating to damages in a case of design patent infringement, that is: where a design patent only covers a single component of an overall product, should a damages award be limited only to those profits attributed to that component?  For more on this case, head over to SCOTUSblog - http://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/samsung-electronics-co-v-apple/.

The equitable defense of laches can apply to claims of patent infringement damages suits, even when they are filed within the six year statutory period as defined by 35 U.S.C. §286, ruled the en banc Federal Circuit in SCA Hygiene Products Aktiebolag v. First Quality Baby Products, LLC., Fed Cir., No. 2013-1564 (Sept. 18 2015). In this narrow 6-5 decision, the court sitting en banc affirmed its earlier summary judgment, which dismissed SCA's patent infringement suit for laches, from September of last year.