As a community service, an educational series by the

IP and Business Law Offices of Howard L. Hoffenberg, Esq.

Copyright 2010 The IP and Business Law Offices of Howard L. Hoffenberg, Esq. All Rights Reserved.

Return to Index of Tour of US Supreme Court Patent Cases from 1961 to 1999

HOLDING: (1) The Patent Remedy Act holding states liable for patent infringement in federal court is unconstitutional. It cannot be sustained under Section 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment. The examples of States avoiding liability for patent infringement by pleading immunity are scarce. The statute's basic aim is to provide a uniform remedy. These are proper Article I concerns, but that Article does not give Congress the power to enact such legislation after Seminole Tribe. (2) The court put its imprimatur on law that scienter is not an element of infringement.

FLORIDA PREPAID POSTSECONDARY v. COLLEGE SAVINGS BANK (June 23, 1999)

 

FACTS: Plaintiff sued an instrumentality of the State of Florida for infringement of a patent. Florida contended that the 11^th Amendment barred suit in federal court.

Tour of US Supreme Court Patent Cases from 1961 to 1999

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A Fast and Easy Way to Learn the High Points of Patent Law and Related Anti-trust Law

Community Service and

Pro Bono

In addition to this education series, Mr. Hoffenberg gives of his time to benefit the community and contribute to the quality justice in the State of California. For many years, he served as a volunteer pro tem in the Municipal Court in traffic, landlord-tenant, small claims and short cause matters. Currently, Mr. Hoffenberg serves as a volunteer arbitrator for the Dispute Resolution Service in attorney-client fee disputes and as a quasi-volunteer mediator in the Court of Appeals.