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The justices ruled 7-2 that a type of in-house patent review at the US Patent and Trademark Office does not violate a defendant's right under the US Constitution to have a case adjudicated by a federal court and jury.
The court ruled against Oil States International Inc, a Houston-based oilfield services company that had challenged the legality of the process, called inter partes review (IPR).
While the ruling gave Silicon Valley reason to celebrate, it was sure to displease name-brand drugmakers, which had called the IPR process a threat to innovation.